Rob(b)in Hood And His Noble Men
by Nico733
Summary: Izuku's only dream was to become a hero. However, his birth quirk was the antithesis of heroism, determined to prove his quirk could do more than hurt people he turned to vigilantism, becoming one of Japan's most notorious and respected vigilantes The Headhunter, who has left all 23 of his victims (all thugs and criminals) quirkless with minimal injuries.
1. Chapter 1

Syntax:

_'Thoughts'_

"Speech"

[Quirks]

* * *

"I can't believe it, they still haven't caught this man?" his mom said, "He's erased people's quirks permanently!"

"You'd think they'd catch someone like that by now!"

"They might not want to catch him all that much Mom, he's a vigilante, he only takes Villain's quirks"

"But isn't it wrong to take something that belongs to someone else like that?"

"Hmmm, you might be right Mom, but I think it's fine since they've used those powers to hurt others in the first place, they don't deserve them."

"Oh, I suppose you're right Izuku." she looks away from the news, which is talking about one of the most, if not the most, notorious vigilante in Japan 'The Headhunter' who leaves his victims (comprised solely of known criminals or people who have committed crimes that were unknown before his attack, but found out soon after) quirkless, people assume his quirk is Permanent Erasure. Inko checks her wristwatch "Oh dear! Izuku I have to leave for work now, make sure you get to school safe, okay?"

"I'll be fine Mooom, I'm going to school with Kacchan, you know how he is, if anyone lays a hand on me they may as well be asking to get fried."

"That's the problem Izuku, I'm not scared for you...I'm more scared that Katsuki will hurt someone."

"Yeaaaaah, that's a lot more likely than me getting hurt." _'Especially if you knew what I was capable of...'_

"I'll keep him under control, don't worry." Izuku smiled brightly at his mother.

"If you say so, honey," she kisses him on his forehead "Have fun at school"

His blinding smile quickly turns to a devilish smirk.

"They really could've come up with something better than 'The Headhunter'."

"Although...There are vigilantes called Pop Step and Knuckleduster... You know, 'Headhunter' is actually pretty good."

"But... 'Permanent Erasure' huh? They really have no idea, oh well, hopefully, they never find out. Ignorance is bliss after all." Izuku has always had a habit of talking to himself, it slows his brain down to comprehensible levels. The closest to relaxed he ever gets.

"Well, best get going otherwise Kacchan is going to be **pissed**." he says picking up his backpack having already dressed and eaten breakfast.

* * *

"Kachaaaan, heeeeeey!"

"Deku shut the fuck up, you don't have to scream."

"Ehehe, sorry Kacchan, I got overexcited. I didn't think I'd enjoy going to U.A with you, but I guess I was wrong."

"Tch, course you were. How's general ed, Mr Honours student?"

"Too easy... I've already covered all of the material, in fact, I'm excluded from the lessons and allowed to do my own thing as long as I sit the exams and get above 90% on them!"

"Pfft. Y'know that's the fucking reason people assume you have an intelligence quirk, no one in their right mind is going to assume you're 'quirkless'" Katsuki knew about Izuku's quirk (of course he did, Katsuki was the first person to experience Izuku's quirk first-hand. He made Izuku promise to tell him everything he could find out about his quirk after that incident), truth be told he knew more than Izuku realised he did.

_'Well... I technically do have an intelligence-augmenting quirk but it's more geared towards tinkering with equipment and stuff... Maybe it has some side effects?'_

"Oi, dork, you're spacing out again!"

"Ahh! Sorry." He said as he started rubbing the back of his neck, another habit he had developed over his lifetime.

And so this pattern continued, small talk, Izuku getting lost in thought and Bakugou bringing him back to reality, as it has all throughout their friendship...One Izuku was so very grateful for, although he really thought he blew it back then.

* * *

"Oi, Deku, why are you crying again?" the blonde with the explosive nature and quirk said.

"I-I-I still haven't mani-manef-"

"Stop trying to use complicated words when you're crying, idiot!"

"I-I still haven't gotten m-m-my quirk!" he says as sobs escape his lips.

"That's why you're crying? It's fine, even if you end up being quirkless!"

"No, it isn't! I can't become a quirkless hero!"

He reaches out to grab Izuku and pull him up so that he can get him off the ground and explain why Izuku is being an idiot.

But Izuku feels something new coming from Katsuki.

A light. Bright and powerful and just itching to be released and just under the surface of his skin. Izuku doesn't even think he just grabs it and pulls.

And the light fades from Katsuki. He gasps. And the look on his face is nothing short of horrified.

_**POP!**_

_**BOOM!**_

"WAAAAH!"

The explosions suddenly coming from Izuku make no sense to him, this was Kacchan's quirk, why did he have it?

"AAAH!"

More explosions, Izuku can't control this new ability, one he shouldn't logically possess.

_**BOOM!**_

_'This isn't good, he doesn't know my quirk, he's scared.'_

"Deku! CALM DOWN!"

Katsuki's shout managed to get Izuku's attention.

"Listen, calm down, my quirk works partially on emotions."

"Deep, slow breaths."

Izuku follows his instructions.

"Okay, do you know how to give it back?"

"I-I think so."

This time he looks at his hands and he sees that same bright, unrestrained glow.

He grabs it but pushes it toward Katsuki this time.

_Snap! Pop!_

Smaller, quieter, much more controlled explosions form in Katsuki's palm as he tests out whether or not his quirk is the same.

"Deku!"

Izuku cowers _'H-He must be so angry, I took his qui-'_

"Your quirk is so cool! It's so strong!"

"B-But I take other's quirks? I can't become a hero with a quirk like this!"

"You could take the villain's quirks!"

"And give them to others!"

"Like Robin Hood!" Bakugou said, his eyes glowing almost as brightly as the power Izuku can feel dwelling within him.

* * *

"Oi, Deku, what's the stupid smile about?"

"Oh, Sorry I was reminiscing."

"Hmmm, what about?"

"That time you said I could be like Robin Hood!" the boy's smile blind Katsuki as he turns towards him.

"Y'know as cheesy as that line was, I still think you could be a hero Deku. Your quirk doesn't sound like it's fit for heroics, but it's not the quirk that matters but the person behind it."

"People would be scared of someone with a stealing quirk Kacchan, even if they were a hero. Besides I've already found a different dream, I'm fine with not becoming a hero."

_'Liar, you think I haven't seen all the hero notes you've made? Or that I don't know why you leave the house at midnight every night? Idiot, course I know I've been your best friend for forever, stupid Deku...'_

"Whatever you say, man, I still say you're more fitting to be a hero than most of my classmates."

"That's mean Kacchan! Your classmates will make great heroes! Ochako, Tenya, Tsuyu, Kirishima, Todoroki, you're all so amazing! There's no way I could ever match any of you with a quirk like mine!"

"**Deku,**" the venom in Katsuki's voice is almost tangible "I fucking hate when you talk about yourself like that and you fucking know it. You could be a hero, that's a fact, you've got that push to help people even though you pretend to be quirkless."

"Hell, you'd be able to take the hero license exam right now and fucking ace it, I'm sure of that."

"Ehehe, it's nice to have someone believe in you." his wide smile returns somehow even bigger than before

"Sure it is, why do you think I get so pumped up when you tell me something like that? Stupid Deku..."

Most of their walk is spent in similar idle chatter until they get closer to the school and others join them on their pilgrimage.

"Heeeey Deku, Bakugou!"

"Hey Round-face."

"Hey! I have a name, you know!" Ochako replies, pouting.

"He won't listen, nicknames are kinda his thing..." Izuku says with a sigh "That's how our whole class thought my real name was Deku and not Izuku... They only found out at graduation..."

"That was fucking hilarious, considering you spent ages helping them with their exam preparation and they STILL didn't know your name."

"Don't rub it in!"

The rest of their trek was complete in a trio. Half of Izuku's mind focused on responding to them, the other half focused on planning tonight's mission.

His quota for today was only 2, normally he'd try for more even if they were basic thugs, but tonight's targets weren't any basic thugs, they'd need his full attention and an elaborate plan, he had to be careful.

_'I have another 6 hours to plan this out considering I'm exempt from all lessons today... Tonight's going to be longer than most, it's been a long time since _I've_ gone after so many dangerous criminals in a single night.'_

* * *

An alarm, blares loudly, signalling Izuku to start his preparations for the night.

_'9 pm, mom __is asleep. Coast__ is clear.'_

He thinks as he slips on his black and grey costume, he prepares all his weapons, straps on his armour plates and puts on his self-engineered voice manipulator.

The Headhunter used blades without points, enough to make shallow cuts but not to maim or kill. That was effectively his signature. If he got a cut on you, it was already over, he could take your quirk immediately all it took was ingesting his victim's DNA.

Izuku's fighting style was focused on his speed, damage was irrelevant, once he took the thug's quirk they were unable to stand up to him even if he didn't use any of his offensive quirks, not that he ever needed to. These kinds of people knew when they were outmatched and bolted.

_'Alright, here goes.'_

His hearing enhanced and sharpened as his chosen quirk started to function.

This quirk he got from basic gang member near the beginning of his 'career' as The Headhunter, said gang member got cocky and tried to take on Izuku but that didn't work out so well for him.

_'Okay. First target is Muscular who recently killed the water horses, leaving their only child an orphan.'_ Izuku's heart cried out...He was too soft for his job, but he was the only one who could do it, and so he would continue doing it.

He focused on the specific words he wanted to hear, any information on Muscular, minutes past, or maybe they were just second but he eventually got something better, a sighting.

"AAAAH, IT'S A VILLAIN!" _'Woman's voice, middle-aged.' _

"SHOW ME YOUR BLOOD!"

_'That's definitely Muscular, crazed motherfucker... I'm bringing you down, you'll pay for what you've done.'_

_'Judging by the sound that was... 7. No, 6 blocks away.'_

_'I can't use [Bolt] right now, I can't control it well enough yet, running into buildings definitely isn't something I want right now...'_

He breaks into a sprint, blowing his previous highest speed out the park even without using [Bolt], desperate situations call for these kinds of measures after all.

_'Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry, if you're too slow she'll die, go faster, you can do this.'_

"STOP RUNNING!"

"I'LL JUST RIP YOU APART, IT WON'T EVEN HURT."

"YOU'LL ALREADY BE **DEAD**!"

_**'Put a hand on another person, and I will personally make sure you end up in Tartarus, or worse.'**_

_**'And that's after taking that prized muscle enhancement quirk of yours...'**_

Izuku's blood boiling only increased his speed further. He didn't believe in limits, not when someone was in need of his help. The day he can't rise to the opportunity, is the day he stops being 'The Headhunter', no, the day he stops being Izuku.

And that day...It most certainly **isn't** today.

With his identity hidden, he can be a hero, he can help people, he can save lives.

No judgement, no social interaction, no bullying.

He can live up to his true potential.

Izuku is a weak, meek, quirkless kid.

The Headhunter is a powerful, respected, unparalleled vigilante.

And he was going to live up to his name.

"YOU'RE DEAD MEAT!"

He didn't even need his super hearing to hear that.

It came from the alley right in front of him.

He was going to fight Muscular, the man who murdered two heroes.

And he was going to **win**.

So he runs into said alley.

_'Huh, there's no one here.'_

"Stop hiding Muscular, I'm here to take you down!" he shouted, a last-ditch effort in case the villain was about to kill whoever it was he was toying with.

"HAHAHA!" that bellowing laughter... It didn't belong to Muscular... Izuku recognised that laugh, he'd heard it a million times over "What a heroic spirit to run all this way to find a Villain about to hurt a civilian!"

"Unfortunately for you Headhunter, Muscular was never here!"

_'Oh fuck... Now I've done it... I'd need at least a hundred quirks to take All Might on head-on.'_

What happens next was unexpected, a fireball flew toward Izuku, one he blocked effortlessly using [Forcefield].

"Endeavour! No need to attack him! We negotiate first remember?"

"I don't negotiate with scum... I eradicate it, he's as much of a villain as those he captures and leaves quirkless..."

"Unlicensed quirk use is a crime, you'd think a Number 1 Hero would know that..."

_'Hold on... Is this a fucking joke? Am I hallucinating? Not only did they send All Might after me... But Endeavour too?'_

"I advise you to stand down." a tired voice sounded from above him, a silhouette on the lamp that illuminated the two heroes and the vigilante.

"Eraserhead." Izuku blurted out.

"Oh. I'm flattered, you managed to recognise me."

"With that position you'll have me in your line of sight at all times, ready to erase my quirk at any second..."

"Apt analysis Kid, too bad you ended up being a vigilante, UA could've used a kid like you."

_'Well, actually I'm a student at UA sir, in fact, you've seen me around and even ended up allowing me to stay with Class 1-A once in a while when I get bored...'_

"Enough talking! I'm burning him to a crisp!"

"NO, ENDEAVOUR, STOP!"

All Might was too late to stop the hot-headed (literally) hero who had prepared another more massive fireball, due to its brightness Eraserhead couldn't erase it... Or he had other reasons.

It didn't matter, fact was... Izuku was about to get cooked alive.

_'FUCK, [Forcefield] won't be enough... I have to use it... This could go horribly. Oh well, better that than dying.'_

Izuku created a shield using his [Forcefield] quirk.

"[Amplify]!"

The shield became more opaque, defined, solid. It was easy to tell how much stronger it had gotten.

The fireball was nearing quickly...

Once it hit the shield, instead of slowly withering out of existence...

It got reflected.

Upwards.

Towards Aizawa.

'He won't be able to dodge it!'

So Izuku ran, in his subconscious, he realised he wouldn't be able to make it, especially not running up a wall, so his body automatically used [Bolt] and [Amplify] to ensure he'd save Eraserhead.]

The world slowed down, the fireball barely moved, and the blood trickling from Izuku's nose, through the holes in his helmet/mask seemed to resist gravity.

He ran, faster than ever in his life.

Towards the building closest to the lamp, and right up it, once he was on Eraserhead's level he shot off the wall toward the other building, grabbing Eraserhead as he went.

Then he ran all the way up that building, slowing down as he went so he could expend the momentum he had built up without killing both of them, they wouldn't have made it to the roof had Eraserhead not used his capture weapon like a rope and pulled them the rest of the way up.

"You're more of a hero than him..."

Izuku had no air left in his lungs, no oxygen in his body. Everything ached.

He looked back at the Class 1-A homeroom teacher... His worst mistake.

"Midoriya!?"

Izuku turned back around almost as fast as he had ran up the wall.

His mask was gone, his identity revealed.

"Y-Y-Yes... ?" He saw no reason in lying, his disguise quirk wouldn't help him now, it was too late.

The man stared at him dumbfounded.

"Your papers say that **you** are **quirkless**."

"W-Well... To the rest of the world, I am quirkless t-there's only one other person that knows about my quirk."

"Bakugou."

The little whimper Aizawa got in return told him all he needed to know.

"Why did you keep your quirk secret?"

"**I steal quirks.**"

"What Japan thinks is permanent erasure... Is actually the ability to take someone's quirk for yourself permanently."

"I knew I wouldn't be able to become a hero... S-So I started taking criminal's quirks, thinking I'd be at least somewhat helpful."

"B-B-But I've probably done more harm than good, huh?"

His voice broke several times, betraying the stream of tears that Aizawa was likely to see should Izuku turn to face him.

"I-I just wanted... To help people. T-To turn something which could only be seen as a Villainous quirk into something heroic...I-I-I failed, miserably."

"**Midoriya**." Izuku visibly flinches at the man's tone "Did you or did you not just use a combination of quirks which could've easily gotten you to another district in a minute to save me? Did you or did you not just sacrifice your only escape to save someone?"

"I-I did."

"Did you or did you not just stop an idiot hero from frying someone?"

"I...I did."

"Then you just did something very heroic. With your 'villainous' quirk."

Endeavour's shout could be heard from the alleyway.

"Listen Midoriya, run to Dagobah Beach, I'll meet you there with All Might once I manage to get rid of Endeavour. We'll discuss this whole ordeal, properly."

Aizawa turned around and jumped down to street level.

Izuku ran, jumping from roof to roof toward Dagobah beach.

_'It's over, I'm going to be exposed as the Headhunter, taken to juvenile detention... Kacchan will be mad.'_

_'I hate this, why couldn't I just have been born with a normal quirk...'_

"Midoriya!" _'Aizawa? But how did he get to the beach before me?'_

Izuku jumped off the roof he was on and rolled as he hit the ground so as to absorb the impact and not hurt himself.

"Young Midoriya, I truly can not believe you were the Headhunter all this time..."

_'He's disappointed, course he is, he's All Might. A hero, he looks at vigilantes like me with disdain.'_

"WONDERFUL WORK YOUNG MAN!" _'wHa-?!' _"I really shouldn't be praising a vigilante, but you were an honest help, taking care of thugs in a more permanent way, and often leaving nothing but a scratch or few on them too!"

"Alright, stop gushing over a student All Might."

"Oh, right." All Might clears his throat with a cough.

"We've got a proposition for you from Principal Nezu himself!"

_'Nezu?! This won't end well...'_

"We won't reveal your identity as the Headhunter."

_'Oh? Maybe not so bad after all...'_

"In exchange for your teaching at U.A. You will assist in all of Class 1-A's subjects and some of Class 1-B's subjects, you will also be a Quirk Advisor, that is to say, any student of U.A may ask you for advice on their quirk."

"B-But, isn't a requirement of teaching at U.A being a Pro-Hero?"

Both heroes are now sporting dangerous smiles.

"Oh...I see."

"You'll take the Hero License exam tomorrow, you won't even need to make a debut just the fact that you are the youngest Pro Hero in Japan will make you popular, besides, you being an assistant teacher to 1-A will be helpful seeing as they all already know you. Oh, once you do become a teacher you will need to be professional at times but you can just talk to them as your friends, you're just a child denying you that would be ineffective."

"B-But... This all sounds too good, shouldn't this be more of a trade? And what about the exam, you're treating it like I'll pass it no problem even though I haven't studied or anything, and I'm not really hero material as i-"

"Midoriya." Aizawa's voice was powerful a stark contrast to his usual tiredness but he has to put his point across "It is a trade, U.A gets a young prodigy teacher and you get to become a hero. As to that exam... You managed to block Endeavour's attack, you'll pass no problem."

"We look forward to working with you!" All Might says jovially "Now, off you go Midoriya! You need all the sleep you can get in preparation for the exam! You have an authorised absence for tomorrow, Aizawa will go to the testing grounds with you, after which you will be switched from U.A student to U.A faculty member!"

* * *

Note:  
I hope this is quality, I've been toying with the idea of a copy quirk since reading 'My Hero Academia: Plus Ultra!' (by Sora 101) but I wasn't satisfied with just a normal copy quirk, so I sort of merged stealing and copying resulting in Izuku's quirk.

The reason for my dissatisfaction is because I wanted Izuku to both be able to copy quirks he's only just seen and those he has seen before, for example, using Aizawa's [Erasure] even though said Pro-Hero is nowhere to be seen.

I won't give you the name of Izuku's quirk yet, it'll be revealed later on, but I will give you it's profile:

Quirk name: **Redacted**

Quirk capabilities:

Quirk Sense - Able to feel/see/sense quirks {Partially inspired by 'Something Borrowed' by ThisCat}

Stealing a quirk by ingesting DNA (immediate)

Stealing a quirk by 'pulling' it (takes focus and time)

Drawback/Backlash:

Stealing a quirk will end up in it losing one of its aspects, this could be strength of the quirk or a part of the said quirk, for example, the true user of [Bolt] was able to run with it for long periods of time while Izuku can only perform short 'dashes' with it.

The above does not extend to a quirk being offered to the user. Offering a quirk means the individual is willing to let Izuku take it.

Each quirk has it's own backlash for being overused, not to mention that Izuku's own quirk has its own backlash for using too many quirks at once or for extended periods of time.

Stolen quirks: 23

Stored quirks:

[Forcefield]  
[Bolt]  
[Amplify]  
[Sonic Hearing]  
[Facade]  
[Tinker's Sense]  
[Quirk Mimicry]

Anyhow, I hope you enjoy this story too, ehehe.

I will still be updating both stories, also CA has had changes to the Entrance Exam, Bakugou's talk with Uraraka and the results of the written exam

Thank you for reading :3


	2. Chapter 2

Syntax:

_'Thoughts'_

"Speech"

**Emphasis**

{Something New}

[Quirks]

_Sound effects_

* * *

_'It's so dark... I hate it here.'_

_'I wish one of those heroes came for me... The ones **he** always talks about with such disdain.'_

_'If **he** hates heroes so much he has to be a villain, right? That's just logical...'_

_'Not to mention all the things I've seen and heard **him** do.'_

_'I don't want to be like **him**... I want to help people not hurt them, not take what's so important to them...'_

_'He wants me to be his protege, to take his place when he's gone.'_

_'I just wish that I turn out quirkless.'_

_'But then what stops him from making another? One that will do his bidding, one that won't oppose him like me.'_

_'**No**, I can't let that happen.'_

_'Another **him** would be too much for the heroes to handle...'_

Later that same day the Villain's hideout was busted by no other than All Might, the top hero himself.

"**Your reign of terror ends today, All For One!, you'll pay for all you've done, my Master will have her vengeance!**"

Something seemed off... All Might wasn't smiling and his tone was dead serious and downright murderous... This is nothing like what he'd imagine him like.

"Hahaha, you're still caught up over Nana?" All For One's tone was jovial, almost. Like meeting an old friend.

"You should forget about her, she left you all alone, Toshinori. An unprepared successor facing the travesties of a hero."

"All because she was **weak**."

All Might suddenly got a lot more menacing.

Fury washing over him.

"Oh? Struck a chord?" All For One continues riling up All Might

_'No...He's going to anger him into making a mistake. And I can't do anything...'_

{Yes you can.}

That was new. A voice in his head.

Maybe he was going insane?

{All Might isn't thinking rationally. But if you made him realise he has to focus on the fight. That he has someone to save. He'll pull through. He will win.}

{Call out Izuku.}

{Call for help. For his help}

And so he did.

"Help, please, All Might!"

The shadows that were cast on All Might's face shifted away, his gaze remained steeled and sharp but in a focused manner rather than a furious one. He was All Might again.

_'Goddamnit Toshinori, you're the Symbol Of Peace, don't let yourself get lead by the nose like that!'_

"You've somehow fallen even lower All For One... Kidnapping a child. That's not in your style!"

"Who says I kidnapped him, All Might?"

The hero's face convulsed in shock.

"HAHAHA, that's right. He's **mine**."

_'No... This **monster **intends to make a child his successor. The Symbol Of Chaos. I will **not** allow it. I will save that child from whatever dastardly plans have been put in motion. Even if in doing so I take my last breath.'_

"Listen to me carefully. I'm only going to say this once."

He looked first directly in All For One's eyes.

"I will stop you, **no matter** the price I will have to pay."

And then at Izuku and his gaze softened, the sneer he had addressed All For One with gone without a trace. Eyes, devoid of disdain, the bluest, most calming blue. They just screamed _You'll be okay, leave it to me. _Izuku let go a breath he didn't even realise he was holding.

"It's okay now. Because I am here."

"You **won't** need to hurt any longer."

"I **will** save you."

Tears ran free from Izuku's eyes.

"Don't make promises you won't be able to keep All Might!" A sentence perfectly punctuated with a ball of red energy, roughly double the size of All Might, one he formed in an instant.

"It's not an empty promise All For One. I WILL END YOU IF THAT'S WHAT IT TAKES!" All Might retaliates by stopping said ball of energy in its tracks and launching it upward, far away from the child, far away from anyone.

"That's an oddly villainous threat for the No.1 Hero, don't you think?"

"**Shut up!**" All Might snarls as he runs at All For One.

Their fists clash.

And the memory ends, after all Izuku hadn't seen the rest of the fight so there's no way he could remember it.

In its place appears the next key memory in Izuku's life.

The aftermath of that fight, All Might fighting for his life at the hospital. Having lost many of his internal organs in the fight prior.

All Might taking care of him for a month or so while he looked for an orphanage he deemed fit to take Izuku off his hands.

During that time Izuku had seen the damage take its toll on All Might's civilian form, true form.

He declined until he was skeletal and looked like he'd collapse at every step.

Oh, and he vomited blood several times a day.

That was probably worth mentioning.

* * *

"Ugh."

Izuku grunted as he turned in his bed.

That is until his mom knocking at his bedroom door fully woke him up.

"Izuku! There's someone from U.A here to meet you! He says his name is Aizawa."

_'Oh shit... I forgot all about that.'_

"Alright, thanks mom, I'll be right out!"

And so he went dressing at speed so that he would at least look presentable.

Shirt, hoodie, pants, socks, shoes.

Hold on.

_'Damnit! I forgot my trousers...'_

After fixing his mishap the green haired boy stepped out to meet his potential co-worker.

"Morning Midoriya."

"M-Morning Aizawa-sensei."

"Just Aizawa, or Eraserhead, remember we're going to be co-workers soon."

"W-What?" Inko gasped.

_'Oh... He's really not going to make this any easier, huh?'_

"Your son is going to become a teacher at U.A, Miss. Midoriya."

"B-B-But don't you need to be a pro to teach at U.A?"

A nod.

"H-How could my Izuku become a pro-hero and a teacher at U.A if he's quirkless?"

Aizawa's blank expression was the closest he was capable of a jaw drop.

"Midoriya?" Izuku grimaced "You haven't told your own Mom?

"W-Well, you see, I-I..." _'Calm down Izuku, you can't keep stuttering like this if you're going to become a pro-hero. Deep breaths, just like that time with Kacchan.' _"I was scared of telling you about my quirk mom... Which is why I just pretended to be quirkless. Truth is. I can steal quirks. I've stolen around 23 by now."

"I-I-Izuku? B-But, how could you steal quirks like that, you know that would be b-"

"Which is why all 23 of them were taken from villains and thugs." he interrupted.

Realisation dawned slowly on Inko's face.

"N-No."

"Y-Yeah, I was the Headhunter this whole time, mom."

"It's why I never let you do my laundry or go snooping in my wardrobe."

"I-Izuku!"

She ran up to him and grasped him in a tight hug.

"How could you put yourself in danger like that? Going after villains like that, with no proper training!"

"I-I taught myself how to fight mom, I wasn't completely helpless."

"A-And... If you've got powers like mine. And you don't do anything. Then the bad things that happen. It feels like they happened because of you. Because you didn't do anything."

"So... I did the only thing I knew how."

"Sorry for interrupting, but I have something to say too."

_'Oh great, what is he gonna do now?'_

"In his defence, the kid really can fight. And the control he has over his stolen quirks. It's immense. Maybe he shouldn't be going after villains like Muscular," (A tiny, sadistic smirk can be seen on Aizawa's face) "Without any extensive training or equipment, but he certainly is more qualified than some pro-heroes I've seen running around during my career."

"Not to mention the fact that he saved my life."

"That's why Nezu specifically gave him this offer."

"Anyway, enough of the sappy stuff."

"Matter is, he is, technically speaking, a criminal. A well respected one. But a criminal. We're going to change that by getting him a hero license," He turns to Izuku "For which the exam is today if you've **forgotten**, so **we** need to get a move on unless you want to be late."

"Pardon the intrusion Miss Midoriya, I'll make sure to get your son back safe and sound after the exam. Hero license in hand." Aizawa said as he pulled Izuku toward the door by his shirt collar.

"I can walk myself, you know!"

"I am aware."

"Let me go then!"

"No."

And that is all Inko hears before the door is shut by Aizawa.

* * *

While Aizawa drove him to the exam venue, which was 2 hours away, Izuku dreamt.

More memories dancing around in his head.

He's in a hospital.

His disguise quirk is on, and he's disguised as a doctor who works in said hospital.

He's following his quirk sense to a room that he knows is housing a child patient.

A quirkless child patient.

He can tell by the lack of glow or emotion coming from the room. Normally Izuku was able to at least tell whether the person was quirkless or not by his quirk sense.

When he felt nothing, he knew the person he was looking at must be quirkless.

And so he visited hospitals every week, put on a disguise and got rid of excess quirks.

He's never cared to find out what would happen if he hoarded quirks, he assumed there would be a limit but he didn't want to hoard quirks.

He wanted to give them to others, who might become great heroes.

They were his legacy.

Just how All For One wanted Izuku to become his.

Just like All Might was to his predecessor.

Izuku, disguised, knocks on the door.

"Come in!" A woman's voice, presumably the child's mother.

He walked in.

"Hello, I'm just here for a final check-up, you're about to leave if, I'm not mistaken?"

"Oh, yes, we were about to leave."

"Ah, I'll make this quick then, do you mind me using my quirk to boost your daughter's immune system and healing?"

"No, by all means, go ahead."

"It does have a backlash, but it affects me not your daughter, you can rest assured. She'll leave healthy as a horse." He smiled.

He placed a hand on the teen girl's forehead.

_'Focus.'_

_'You can't afford to mess this up.'_

_'This girl, Mirai. Came in with bruises and fractures. She was probably beaten by some bullies. Maybe even some older men. She deserves a brighter future, a power to ward off the evil. A quirk springs into his memory, and almost tears itself from his body. It chose the girl.'_

_'This quirk... It manipulates light, it can even weaponise it. Bolts, swords, armour and so much more. [Aurora].'_

_'The aspect it lost when I stole it...Stability. Creations made with it only last a limited amount of time.'_

_'Here comes the tough part.'_

"Amplify!"

_'Remember the original form of the quirk. Reconstruct it. No. Make it stronger, better, faster.'_

_'Stability and power.'_

_'There!'_

And so he passed [Aurora] on to Mirai, the light fading from within him, and flowing into the girl.

Light brimming inside of her. Bright, warm, kind.

Yes. She was the perfect successor.

"I have good news." He said as he turned with a smile.

"It seems something was inhibiting her quirk factor, that is to say."

"She wasn't actually quirkless" His smile grows wider, his eyes closing.

Her mother tears up.

Mirai gasps.

"I've fixed it, she's bound to develop her quirk any day now."

Now both, mother and daughter have massive smiles on their faces.

"I do hope you use it carefully, young Mirai." (Some of All Might's speech patterns had rubbed off on him and remained ingrained in his mind.)

"If she injures herself or anyone else when her quirk manifests, please make sure to get the injured individual to the nearest hospital or qualified healer."

"Yes! Thank you, doctor!"

He felt something run into him from behind.

Mirai had latched onto him in a hug.

_'W-Well, this was definitely unexpected.'_

Her mother had joined in.

_'O-Oh...G-Guess this is my life now.'_

And the warm, fuzzy memory fades as he falls into a deeper sleep.

* * *

"Oi, Midoriya!"

"Waah-!?"

"It's time, kid. You're exam starts soon, go into that building, ask for the exam at the reception, they'll point you in the right direction."

"H-Hold on, you're not going in with me?"

"It would be unprofessional and suspicious for a pro-hero to walk into an exam venue with someone taking the exam."

"T-That does make sense..." he says with a slight pout.

"I will be observing though, you are strong and your skills are higher level than most. But that just means you have to drain to make them as close to perfect as you can. I **will** be strict with your training."

Izuku, recoiled in fear, he hated when Aizawa got this imposing, he even managed to scare Kacchan. Well, the explosive boy would never admit it, but Izuku could tell.

"Anyway, run along, it's your time to shine, Midoriya."

"O-Okay, if you think I can do it."

He got out the car and jogged up halfway to the door.

"Midoriya!"

Izuku turns back.

To a strange image.

Aizawa was _smiling._

Not a smirk, not a micro-smile.

**Full on smiling.**

_**Talk about out of character.**_

"Good Luck, Midoriya."

Izuku couldn't help it.

He smiled too.

The widest smile possible.

Ear to ear would be an understatement.

Tears brimmed in the corners of his eyes.

"Thank you Aizawa-sensei!"

_'Goddamnit Midoriya, that whole-hearted smile of yours is terrifying. Villains will quiver just at the sight of it...'_

_'Hold on, sneaky brat, he used the honorific again.'_

* * *

_**'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA'**_

_**'I'M GONNA BE LATE.'**_

_**'THEY WOULDN'T TELL ME WHERE THE EXAM WAS BEING HELD SINCE THEY DIDN'T BELIEVE I WAS A CANDIDATE, DAMNIT!'**_

_**'RUN IZUKU RUN, YOUR FUTURE DEPENDS ON IT!'**_

He skidded into the class where the heroes were being briefed on the exam just as the instructor, Best Jeanist, started speaking.

"How'd you get in here, fanboy?" he spoke in that collected and esteemed tone of his that he was so popular for "These are the hero license exams, you shouldn't be here."

"I-I..." he struggled to catch his breath "I-I'm here," _huff, _"For the hero exam."

Jeanist looks down to the short green haired boy with something akin to an angry surprise, he thinks he's making this out to be a joke.

"**Kid**-"

"No, I mean it! I'm here to become a hero."

"Kid, this is really getting on my nerves, I want to start the brief, so would you please get ou-"

"Eraserhead?!"

_'Wha-?'_

"Yeah, I thought this would happen, thankfully I decided to check up on you." he looked at Izuku "Midoriya is here to take the hero license exam, Nezu, All Might and I all personally recommend him."

With ever pro hero's name he dropped the jaws of everyone in the room, including Best Jeanist's, dropped. Especially at the mention of All Might.

"Are you sure about this, Eraser? He looks like a first-year, no school would recommend their first-year hero students to take their Pro-Hero license exam."

"He's a different case, I would hazard to say he's the closest to a pro-hero U.A has at the moment, including the third years."

Again, everyone just gets more and more surprised, their eyes seem to be almost popping out of their sockets.

"Anyway, I won't bother you any longer Jeanist, let his aptitude speak for itself."

He walks back toward the door of the classroom.

"Oh, I need to correct you on one thing," Aizawa says, facing them, a shit-eating grin plastered on his face.

_'No, please. You've done enough, the spotlight is already completely on m-'_

"Midoriya isn't a hero course student, he's in general education."

He closes the door as he leaves.

Everyone is staring daggers at Izuku as they realise their most dangerous competition is a 15-year-old recommended by U.A's principal, the Symbol Of Peace and the top underground hero.

And Izuku just wants to sink into the ground.

_'Why haven't I found a permeation quirk yet...'_

_'Why must Aizawa-sensei do this to me...'_

_'My face is heating up, I might just evaporate...'_

* * *

Sorry this took so long .

I've been exhausted and sapped of most creativity due to exams, but I've got a week's break now so I might actually get back on top of posting chapters earlier, I might make the next post a Concrete Angel chapter but that depends on two things:  
Whether anyone actually wants another CA chapter

What I feel more like writing

Anyhow I've taken the liberty of making Eraserhead the top underground hero because I love his character just as much as All Might if not more. Although I feel like the way I write him is very lacklustre compared to some fics which get his character like 100% on point.


	3. Chapter 3

Essentially chapter 2.1 or 2.5

* * *

After getting assaulted by hugs from both mother and daughter, Izuku excused himself and hurried out of the room.

He felt his disguise letting up so he hurried into the nearest bathroom.

_'Here we go again, this backlash really sucks.'_

_'But it does make sense considering the insane amount of precision and use time on both [Amplify] and my own quirk.'_

And he hurls into the toilet, some blood sprinkled in between the sickly green fluid.

_'Oh great, I overdid it even by my own standards...'_

_'Great now I'll be light-headed and in pain for the rest of the day.'_

As he left the bathroom he noticed Mirai and her mother up ahead of him.

Mirai was looking up at her mom and smiling from ear to ear.

Her smile must've been contagious seeing as her Mom was also smiling wide.

And Izuku soon followed suit.

_'Y'know, the price isn't really that bad considering how happy it makes them...'_

_'And the fact that I'll have an impact even after I'm gone makes me happy too.'_

_'I just hope the quirks make their lives better...'_

_'And that they use them well.'_

_'But I believe in them, they're good kids.'_

_'I've seen it.'_

_'Visiting them to see how their quirks are growing every once in a while really puts a smile on my face.'_

_'They're all so cool!'_

_'I can't wait to see them become heroes!'_

_'I have to make sure to get their autographs as soon as they debut!'_

His eyes sparkled at the thought.


	4. Chapter 4

Thank you very much for 100 followers. :3

If you have any questions about the story or anything you'd want me to answer feel free to PM me or write a review/comment.

I'll try to answer everything I can.

* * *

Izuku walked to take an empty seat in the middle of the classroom, all the eyes in the room were on him. Tracing his every movement.

Some looked at him like he was a bomb ticking away right in front of them.

Others looked on with jealousy.

Others analysed him.

Others looked like they were just waiting to get the chance to tear him apart.

But all of them had something in common...

The realisation that if they want to test themselves, the best test would be upping the kid sent by All Might, Nezu and Eraserhead.

Izuku knew he probably had nothing to worry about, after all, he has the quirk advantage over every single one of the aspiring heroes in the room.

Even Best Jeanist.

But he also knew that quality matters more than quantity. It doesn't matter how many powers he has but how well he uses them.

This situation really made him feel inadequate.

"A-Alright," Jeanist is taken aback but manages to regain his composure quickly, "Let's begin with the brief."

The screen behind Jeanist was brought to life, showing a huge dome, bigger than the USJ... And **that **was saying something.

"The scenario for your exam is as follows: A villain syndicate has attacked the city, many civilians have been injured, buildings are collapsing and the villain's quirks are causing natural-disaster level issues. Your mission: Defeat and capture the villain syndicate, save as many civilians as possible all while keeping the damage to a minimum."

"The villain syndicate obviously won't consist of actual villains, instead many of the top 50 Japanese heroes will be acting as the villains, myself included."

"Anyhow, you have 20 minutes to prepare yourselves while we set up the exam."

Everyone filed out of the room.

Izuku was anxious and excited.

And he was prepared to spend all of those 20 minutes panicking internally and not moving where he was sat.

Until Eraserhead came along about 10 minutes after everyone had left the room.

"Oi, Midoriya."

He waved his hand in front of Izuku's face.

No response.

"Midoriya!"

"AAH!"

"You were spacing out."

"Ehehe." he scratched at the back of his neck as he usually does in these kinds of situations "Sorry, what did you need me for?"

"I forgot to give you your hero costume."

"Wha-? H-Hero costume? But there's no guarantee I'll pass the exam. And what about my quirk? You wouldn't know enough about it to make a complimentary hero costume."

"Which is why it's a prototype costume. The upgrades are extremely generic and versatile. It's made with an expansive and durable material, in case you ever find yourself in possession of a muscle mass enhancement quirk or some size changing quirk. The gloves and boots have metal plates on the inside to boost the strength of physical attacks, don't worry it's a lightweight alloy, you're speed reliant so I especially told them to keep everything as light and speedy as possible. The rest of the gimmicks that were included in your costume are noted inside the case."

He says as he holds out to Izuku a large metal case.

"B-But..."

"**Midoriya**, I know exactly what you are about to say... So **shut up** and listen to me. You **deserve** this shot. You **deserve** all we've done for you and you **are** capable of passing this exam. If we thought that you weren't we would've just enrolled you in class 1-A instead. As it stands we know that you would outrank most if not all UA students. Third-year hero course students included."

"W-What? No way, what about the Big Three? There's no way I could beat anyone of th-"

"**Midoriya!**"

Izuku freezes in his tracks.

"They'd struggle to fight you when you hold back. They'd lose in seconds if you weren't. Truth is not many people could fight a quirk like yours. If you managed to get a sneak attack on any of the U.A teachers, who are seasoned pro-heroes, you'd win. They'd be disarmed."

"You've got the most potential of anyone at U.A, because your quirk can change constantly. You can be a completely different hero every year."

"Not to mention the sheer power you'd have if you could merge quirks effortlessly."

"And that is why we're taking you on because we trust and believe that you will become something great."

"So, Stop selling yourself short. You're powerful, be a little more confident."

"I want you to walk into the exam with confidence that you'll show exactly what you're made of. Show off Midoriya, you deserve to show the world how much of a prodigy you are."

Those words even Izuku can't oppose. The tone that Aizawa used meant no arguments could be made.

And Izuku's infectious smile returned once more.

"Alright Midoriya, stop smiling at me and get ready for that exam."

"You've only got 7 minutes left, you need to go now if you want time to read through the other features in your costume."

"Good luck Midoriya."

As Izuku turns to run to a toilet to change Aizawa calls to him one more time.

"Oh, one more thing. Pick something good as your hero name."

Izuku freezes immediately.

He forgot about picking hero names in the heat of the moment.

_'What am I going to _choooooose_?!'_

"You're going to be the youngest hero in the World. You'll get popular immediately."

"So make sure to wear the damn mask we gave you Midoriya. If people found out your identity you would have to deal with them around the clock, that'll hamper your work at UA and outside of it."

_'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.'_

_'I completely forgot about fans and haters...I'm going to have to deal with them soon.'_

"You'll be fine Midoriya, stop panicking."

"Worry about everything like that after the exam."

"Go wow them kid."

A curt nod from the green haired boy followed, his lips contorted into that iconic nervous smile of his.

And he rushed off to change.

* * *

_'Okay, case is empty. Double-checked.'_

_'So this is my costume, huh?.'_

_'It's so cool!'_

Said costume was emerald green with black and white accents, highlights and decor. Complete with a hood too, one that cast a shadow on Izuku's face. Now covered with a mechanized face mask.

The face mask covered his mouth and nose while also acting as a filter (in case of dangerous gases) and a voice changer to better hide his identity.

The mask was green and black, and boy was Izuku glad for it. It'd make hiding his identity much easier.

"All examinees to the exam hall. All examinees to the exam hall."

'AAAAAA, I have to run!'

The announcement had Izuku speeding down corridors and skidding around corners almost finding himself face first on the floor several times.

But he made it.

_'Hall? HALL? This is like an underground kingdom! It's bigger than U.A's battle centres!'_

"Okay, now that you are all here we can begin the examination," this time the announcement was a human voice, not a robotic one "Your objective to finish the examination is securing all the civilians while minimizing the damage and holding off several top villains."

"To pass the examination, however, you must show how great of a hero you can be. This will be graded on an individual level by an examiner. Each one of you is being observed by your own assigned examiner who will grade you on your combat abilities, rescue abilities and such."

"So don't worry, even if you don't participate in any combat you can pass on your rescuing prowess."

"With that said, we will now begin the exam."

The announcer really meant it when he said they would 'now' begin the exam.

As a skyscraper exploded right after he said so.

The examinees ran as if the explosion were a starting gunshot.

None of them as fast as Izuku who was pushing his [Bolt] to the limits.

Using [Amplify] to increase both its speed and consistency.

It was almost seamless, far from the usual 'dashes' he performs with it.

And it was severely draining, he'd be down in seconds in any other situation.

But those civilians may actually be hurt.

And he'd be damned if he didn't try to change that.

{5 civilians nearby}

{All hurt, injuries of varying seve-}

_'Shut up!'_

_'Get out of my head!'_

_'I don't have time to deal with you now!'_

"Help!"

That cry for help brings Izuku back to the moment.

"It's alright! I'm here to help!"

He shouts confidently as he navigates toward the person who cried out.

Izuku could pinpoint them thanks to his quirk sense.

When he peers under the rubble where the glow of a quirk was coming from he saw a thin man with a cut on his forehead.

"Sir are you okay? Injured anywhere else?"

"I-I can't feel my leg, I think it's broken."

_'Okay, I'll have to make some kind of makeshift splint. And make sure not to injure him any more when I take the rubble off him.'_

"Sir, can your quirk help in this situation?"

"I-It's regeneration. Really weak."

_'I can use amplify on him and boost his quirk so it can regenerate his leg.'_

_'But what about the rubble?'_

"You need some help?"

A calm, deep voice says from behind Izuku.

He turns to see a man in a crimson and black costume.

"I can move the rubble off of him without hurting him."

"After you do that I'll heal him."

"Alright!" he says while giving Izuku a thumbs up.

And then he sets off to work.

The giant piece of rubble starts glowing red and slowly moving off the civilian.

Izuku dives under it as soon as there is space and slowly moves the civilian away from under it.

As soon as he's clear the rubble falls.

And the hero behind him falls to his knee.

Izuku immediately uses [Amplify] on the civilian, a warm green light enveloping both of them as the man's foot twists back into place.

"[Amplify]" he whispers fulfilling the requirement for [Amplify] to activate.

"Thank you!"

_THUD_

Izuku turns toward the source of the sound.

And he sees a giant.

Her foot coming towards the crimson hero who can only look on in his exhaustion.

Izuku's feet move before he knows it.

He uses [Bolt] unconsciously to make it to the fallen hero.

"**[Amplify]!**" in the heat of the moment Izuku doesn't even try to keep his voice at a normal level, he screams.

A solid green forcefield appears before him, stopping Mt Lady's kick like it were nothing.

He pushes the forcefield back knocking her off balance.

He gives her no time to react, using [Mimicry] to copy her gigantification quirk.

To take advantage of her being off balance he only gigantifies one arm, striking out at her and pushing her back.

"I'll take care of her! You rest then help the other civilians!" Izuku yells back to the fellow hero as he uses gigantification over his whole body.

_'Beating her will be the easier part, she's not as experienced in hand to hand combat as I am.'_

_'But I've got to push her towards an already damaged area, or one outside the city.'_

_'So I can limit damage and injuries.'_

_'There!'_

Izuku spots a patch of destroyed buildings big enough for two giants to fight each other.

So he grabs onto Mt Lady's arms and wrestles her back towards it.

"This is it, you're mine!" Izuku is confident in his skills.

Finding one-on-one is his forte. Not to mention his hand-to-hand combat skills.

That's where the majority of his experience is.

He doesn't have any quirks that can reliably draw blood so he used hand-to-hand combat and hidden blades instead.

Mt Lady doesn't just let him do what he wants though.

She lashes out, powerful punches and kicks thrown haphazardly. Each one blocked effortlessly by Izuku.

She's too much of a novice to be of any threat to Izuku.

Once they're among the rubble Izuku begins his onslaught.

Precise punch after precise punch timed to near perfection.

Izuku makes sure to play to his strengths. His flexibility and speed overwhelming Mt Lady.

It only takes him a few seconds to knock Mt Lady out cold and she goes back to her default size, Izuku follows.

_'Alright, I should go back and make sure the civilians are sa-'_

Izuku instinctively activates his [Sonic hearing] after every encounter. A habit he got into, it's what kept him from getting caught for so long, both by friends of the thugs and villain's he'd crippled and the heroes who wanted to rid the streets of the Headhunter.

He heard explosions, something akin to gunshots _'must be Gun Head.' _and three voices he recognised Best Jeanist's, Gang Orca's and Gun Head's (only confirming his earlier guess).

_'I'm the most adapted to combat of any of the examinees without a doubt. I should leave the rescue efforts to them and focus on defeating the villains.'_

_'Let the heroes more suited to help handle the rescue efforts.'_

"[Amplify]!"

Immediately Izuku took off like a rocket, boosting himself with [Bolt].

This time he only extended the duration of the 'dash' by a little bit and instead focused a lot of energy into the speed of it.

Resulting in speed near enough breaking the sound barrier.

He didn't stop either, launching himself into Best Jeanist like a bullet, in the final moments before impacting Jeanist he pours all of the energy he can into the speed. Maximising the damage.

Jeanist was the biggest threat of the three with him being a long ranged fighter capable of weaponising the very fabric you're wearing.

The other two Izuku could just overpower if he got rid of Jeanist.

He slammed into Jeanist with incredible force, however, Jeanist managed to use his quirk to manipulate the fibres of his denim Hero Costume to latch around Izuku as he was being sent back into a tree.

_'Damnit, my strategy hinged on getting rid of Jeanist first.'_

_'Fighting three on one was something I wanted to avoid under any circumstances...'_

_'They're going to keep coming at me all at once.'_

_'I've really set myself up to lose here.'_

_'I'm gonna have to hold back less if I want to get my hero license.'_

_'No more pretending to only have a copying or adaptation quirk.'_

"I've got them! You guys help with the rescue!"

Izuku says with utmost authority and confidence so that the other heroes get the message.

And they at least get part of it as they all speed off toward the more urban areas where the rescue efforts and temporary 'hospital' are.

And Izuku is left to fend for himself against three fully-fledged pro heroes.

Two of them in the top ten.

Suffice it to say that Izuku is panicking.

While he realises that his quirk is great for this situation considering the abilities he has stored within it he still doesn't think he'd be able to take down three pro heroes.

But now that he's here he has to try.

"How very arrogant of you." Orca's bellowing voice sounds "Taking us all on by yourself, hero."

"This will be the last bad decision you make." Orca's eyes shine with killer intent.

_'I can't beat them head-on, I've got to play to my advantages and think.'_

_'Gun Head can attack both at long and short range.'_

A shot from Gun Head can be heard.

_'Orca is similar except his only real ranged attack is using ultrasound.'_

Izuku turns to face Jeanist.

_'Jeanist doesn't do too well in close-quarters.'_

_'Orca can't risk using ultrasound due to the other two.'_

_'Gun Head is probably the weakest link in general, Jeanist is the weakest link in close-quarters.'_

_'My best bet is using Jeanist's quirk.'_

And mimics his quirk, willing the fibres to life.

He pulls Jeanist along with them and sends him flying right into Gun Head.

Using the No.4 Hero not only as a weapon but a shield to take Gun Head's cartilage bullet for Izuku.

Gun Head sidesteps Jeanist and grabs the fibres that are trailing off him.

Saving Jeanist from smashing into a stout house, but leaving himself wide open.

"Nice try Hero, but you've got me to deal with!"

Orca shouts as he charges at Izuku.

_'Okay, everything is going to plan.'_

"That's exactly what I wanted!"

"In a battle of attrition, I'm bound to win!"

"That's some confidence for someone going up against three villains at once."

_'That's where you're wrong, I'm not fighting three villains at once, I'm fighting three one-on-one battles.'_

_'And I've done worse on many occasions.'_

_'I don't have many flashy quirks, those are better off with my disciples.'_

_'But I do have [Forcefield].'_

"[Amplify]!"

_'Make it as solid as possible, no give whatsoever.'_

_'And coat your body with it.'_

_'Armour and gauntlets.'_

_'Harder than steel too.'_

"I'll tear you apart!"

Orca swings for Izuku.

"Not even going to dodge?"

"Hahaha, you think you can take my punch?"

"You're overconfident Hero!"

Orca's fist meets Izuku's form.

Izuku doesn't budge.

Orca swings again.

And again.

And again.

To no avail.

"I call this move Force Resistance."

"Your attacks don't even faze me."

"And the best part about it?"

Izuku swings his arm around; his hips following through; foot pivoting; his whole body is behind the punch.

"It can be used to attack too!"

Orca recoils from the force of the punch delivered to his face.

Izuku's face is set in a confident grin.

_'I can do this!'_

_'I can win.'_

He punches again, this time square into Orca's stomach. Taking advantage of the makeshift villain's moment of weakness.

_'I can't afford to pull any punches.'_

_'I have to take him out **now**.'_

_'Which means I have to go beyond!'_

_'This is my Plus Ultra!'_

Izuku sends punch after punch into Orca's gut, all boosted by an amplified [Forcefield] and [Bolt], pushing himself into overdrive to make sure that Orca stays down.

"Sorry, but I can't afford to hold back!"

Within seconds Orca's hulking form crumples to the ground.

Izuku is confident that he avoided all vital points, but knocking someone unconscious has always made him irrationally nervous.

_'That's one down,'_

Izuku turns toward where Gun Head and Jeanist are now standing.

Gun Head's quick thinking meant that Jeanist was fine.

But the element of surprise from Izuku copying Jeanist's quirk meant that Orca was down and unlikely to get up.

Izuku lets his Force Resistance go, no point in keeping it up while it's out of use.

It'll only drain him more.

And he's already running on fumes.

"Which one of you two is next?"

Forced confidence rolls off Izuku's voice.

He knows he's strong.

But unsure whether he's enough to beat two heroes in the top 50.

Definitely not both at once.

"Foolish question hero!"

Gun Head shouts.

"Who said we'd come at you one at a time."

Jeanist says loudly.

_'Fuck.'_

Izuku can feel his clothes constricting immediately.

_'Jeanist's quirk.'_

Gun Head runs up to the now trapped Izuku.

Firing at him as he runs.

_'**Fuck.'**_

_'Think of something.'_

_'You have roughly 3 seconds until the cartilage bullets hit you.'_

_'Force Resistance could work, but it might not.'_

_'Not risking it.'_

_'I've gotta use Jeanist's quirk again...'_

_'But catching the bullets with fibres could be a ballsy move.'_

_'Or it could bring victory.'_

_'You never know if you don't try, I guess...'_

_'Here goes nothing!'_

Immediately, the fabric Gun Head's costume is made out of unravels slightly.

And the fibres intertwine in the air, forming durable threads.

Those threads stretching, unfurling and chasing the cartilage bullets.

Izuku takes advantage of that empty moment to also send some threads from Gun Head deep underground, rooting him in place.

He also uses some threads to tie Gun Head's arms securely to his sides, stopping him from firing any more bullets.

The next moment the threads make contact with the bullets and cocoon around them, slowing them down until they fall to the ground.

_'Gun Head temporarily immobilised, it'll take Jeanist a while to work those threads out of the ground.'_

_'My best course of action is taking out Jeanist while I have the chance.'_

Izuku undoes the restraints Jeanist wove onto him and uses those threads to latch onto Jeanist and propel himself toward him.

_'Not enough time to use Force Resistance all on my body.'_

_'So I'll just use it on my fist.'_

_'5cm thickness, solid.'_

_'And aim right for his stomach.'_

The green-haired missile rockets toward Jeanist who tries his best to undo the threads around him and move but they hold him steadfastly.

_'How the hell does this kid manage to use this many quirks at once?'_

_'How does he even have multiple quirks?'_

Those are the last thoughts to rush through Jeanist's mind as he crumples as Orca did before him.

_'One to go.'_

_'And with Jeanist down there's no way he can get those threads out of the ground.'_

_'Should remain cautious though.'_

_'I'll use Force Resistance on my whole body, just in case.'_

"Sorry I had to leave you until last."

"It must be frustrating being unable to do anything."

A single punch to Gun Head's gut.

He slouches forward, unconscious in his restraints.

"It's over," Izuku says madly.

"It's actually _over._" Izuku says again as he starts laughing uncontrollably in relief.

But he made a novice mistake.

Letting his guard down.

He didn't use his [Sonic Hearing] nor did he pay attention to the blinding light he felt, with his quirk sense, sneaking up on him.

"Very well done, hero." The voice sounded familiar but oh so wrong.

Izuku was used to this voice carrying confidence, reassurance or pride.

Only positive emotions.

But All Might's voice carrying such venom and killing intent was unheard of.

Izuku was petrified.

"I suppose I should make you pay for what you did to my colleagues..."

Izuku gulps heavily.

He uses Force Resistance on instinct.

"[Amplify]." is whispered.

But not even an amplified 10cm armour will be enough to stop a punch from All Might.

"Just the air pressure from my punch should be enough to deal with you."

Izuku turns to look at his demise.

And he sees pure evil staring back from All Might's glowing red eyes.

_'B-But All Might's eyes are b-blue?'_

And suddenly he's flying back through trees, houses, fences. Everything.

All Might sent him flying from the suburbs all the way to the city centre.

With one punch.

Just the air pressure.

From one punch.

Izuku's armour collapsed right before his final impact.

It defended him from everything.

But it collapsed at a crucial moment, right before his impact with a concrete building.

He falls to the ground quickly following his impact.

But he feels some kind of invisible force grab him.

Slowing his fall and bringing him down.

"You alright?"

Izuku slowly lifts his eyelids.

"Y-You're that...crimson hero... from before."

The face he sees smiles back at him

"That I am, jeez kid."

"You've overdone it."

"Overexerted yourself."

"Stay here," the hero sets him down against a wall, careful not to jostle him too much "I mean it, **stay **here. Don't go running off kid, you're already going to suffer from some major quirk sickness."

The hero quickly runs off to check the damage that was done by Izuku falling through the buildings.

Making sure that no civilians were further harmed by the rubble Izuku dislodged as he flew.

But he also makes a rookie mistake.

Probably due to the stress and exhaustion from the exam piling up.

Walks right under a damaged building without checking it's stability.

And some rubble drops toward him.

Izuku starts seeing the world in slow motion as his brain goes into overtime.

_'H-He won't realise...in time.'_

_'I-I ha-have to help...'_

So Izuku stands.

On shaky, wobbly legs.

And he runs one last time in this exam.

Using [Bolt], without [Amplify], to run up to the crimson hero.

He promptly drops by the hero's side and uses [Forcefield] above them.

A thick, green disc there to catch the rubble.

And he closes his eyes.

_'W-Where's the impact?'_

Izuku didn't hear an impact.

He should've.

But he didn't.

He opens his tired eyes once more.

"It's alright," a giant, muscly, blond man stands above him, on the forcefield, his fist extended skyward "Because I am here!"

_'Al-All Migh-'_

Izuku promptly collapses.

The exhaustion finally catching up to him.

* * *

Note:

Thank you for reading all of that!

It really means a lot to me, especially after going through some rough times (ironically enough the worse I feel the more productive I get with this story, ehehe.).

Some things to point out.

1\. Izuku's fighting style is similar to Eraser's.

2\. [Amplify] is voice activated, it lost the ability to be activated in any other way when Izuku took it.

3\. 'Quirk Sickness' is any backlash from your quirk that happens for a while after you overuse it (In Izuku's case the intense exhaustion).

4\. 'Quirk Backlash' is any immediate repercussion after using/overusing a quirk e.g Uraraka vomiting after using her's.

5\. The exam (Izuku has just done) is occurring a day before the USJ which means chapter 4 is going to be the USJ arc however Izuku is now a teacher not a student.

Please post any criticisms, reviews, comments or praise.

I read all the reviews even if I don't respond to them all.

(Next week might be a CA chapter seeing as it's almost been a month since the last one, but that really depends.)


	5. Chapter 5

Syntax:

'Thoughts'

"Speech"

**Emphasis**

{Something New}

[Quirks]

Sound effects

* * *

Izuku wakes up to an all-white environment.

_'Hospital?'_

_'Ugh, my head is killing me...'_

_'What even happened?'_

"Oh good, you're awake."

A voice.

One he'd recognise under different circumstances.

So agonisingly familiar, but he couldn't piece together whose.

Izuku's mind was sluggish, nowhere near as quick as he'd like it to be.

But it would catch up soon, once he woke up a little more.

"Honestly... You boys keep getting yourself hurt or overdoing things."

"It worries me how little you all seem to care about your own well-being."

An elderly voice.

Izuku's mind slowly started piecing things together, waking up.

"Too reckless too, you're all about going beyond your limits."

"Forgetting they're there for a reason in the first place"

The white curtain is pulled away.

By a small old lady wearing some kind of nurse unif-

"Recovery Girl?!"

"Who else would it be!"

"Honestly, what were they thinking making you a hero when you're 15..."

"W-What?"

"I don't remember what exactly happened, I passed out during the exam."

"No. No, you didn't, the exam had already finished when you passed out."

"You passed."

Pride swells inside Izuku.

"Top of the group."

"T-Top?"

"You defeated three heroes. Including two in the top ten."

"Where else did you think that would put you?"

"The 'villains' where only there as obstacles to work around, not beat. They were instructed to not hound you, examinees, too much but you went out and defeated three of them like it was nothing."

"Well, I did struggle and I didn't think I'd be able to do it and-" Izuku slowly went into another mutter storm.

Recovery Girl hits him with her cane to stop his muttering.

"Well, the point is you did."

"However since you were out of it they chose your hero name for you, it's only temporary though."

"The Emerald Hero: Valor."

"Again, you can change it if you wi-"

"It's great!"

"I wasn't able to think of anything better anyway."

"Well if you say so, you should get going now." She responds, slightly taken aback.

"You've got to get changed into your hero costume, you're going on a trip with class 1-A today."

"It will be Thirteen, Eraserhead and you. So don't worry too much."

"Where are we going?"

"To the USJ, so hurry along, you'll be late."

He gets up and picks the case with his repaired costume up.

"Oh, one more thing. When you get ready, head to the staff room."

Izuku rushed into the nearest toilet changing out of the ruined costume he wore for the exam and into the brand new, augmented one in the case.

He didn't have time to read all its features this time, he'll just have to figure them out as he goes.

He runs straight to the staff room.

"HEEEEEY! IT'S OUR NEW CO-WORKER!"

_'Loud, must be Present Mic.'_

"WELCOME TO THE TEAAAAAM!"

The other teachers welcomed him similarly but much, much less loudly than Mic.

"YOU'RE FAMOUS ALREADY, I'M JEALOUS!"

"W-What?"

"YOU DON'T KNOW?"

"CHECK IT OUUUUUT!"

He points at the TV mounted in the staff room.

It's covering a story on 'The Emerald Prodigy: Valor'.

"W-wHA-?"

Izuku blushes furiously behind his mask.

"I-I'm no prodigy."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, MIDORIYA?"

"YOU'RE A GENIUS, NOT TO MENTION YOUR QUIRK!"

"SPEAKING OF THAT, WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US ABOUT THAT SICK ADAPTATION QUIRK YOU'VE GOT?"

_'Adaptation? They...They don't know?'_

Out of the corner of his eye, he spots Aizawa.

In that one second of eye contact, a silent conversation passed between them.

"Erm...I thought it wouldn't be fit for heroics seeing as I didn't know what it would become in a situation."

"I-It might become something too specific that I wouldn't be able to use."

He laughs nervously while scratching at the back of his neck.

A habit of his. It's more prominent when he lies, but not many of the teachers would've figured that out.

"You're coming with me today Midoriya."

Aizawa says in his usual tired tone.

"Yup, I'm aware."

Izuku says, a smile in his voice (hidden behind his mask).

"Thirteen is the star of the show today seeing as we're doing rescue training, so don't worry too much about your first day."

"That being said you will have to introduce yourself." his volume shifts, to a much quieter whisper, not letting any of the other faculty members know what he was saying "And you can keep pretending that your quirk is just an adaptation quirk if you're not comfortable telling them yet"

"T-Thank you." Is whispered right back.

A grunt is all the answer Aizawa gives the new faculty member.

And they head to class 1-A's homeroom.

Muffled shouts of "Have you heard?" and "15-year-old?" could be heard from inside their classroom.

Izuku froze outside the door.

They were talking about him.

**They saw the news.**

Izuku's brain is stuck booting back up after the shock.

"I'll tell you when to come in and do your introduction."

Izuku is barely able to grunt his response.

The shifting of chairs can be heard as everyone takes their seats.

"I've got some important announcements."

"First of all, as you know today is your trip to the USJ to practice your rescue skills."

"Second, three qualified pro heroes who teach at U.A will be accompanying us, including me. It was originally supposed to be All Might but he's resting on Recovery Girl's orders."

"Third, I have someone to introduce to you."

_'This is your time Izuku, introduce yourself properly and make sure they suspect nothing.'_

"Come in!"

_'You can do it. You can do it. You can do it. **Youcandoit. Youcandoit. OhgodthisistoomuchIcan'tdoit.**'_

Izuku thinks as he comes in, his costume donned.

It was slightly upgraded from the last model.

All of his costume was fire-resistant, water-resistant, semi shock-absorbant and insulated to stop Izuku from getting shocked. All of this made to his order, he'd be dealing with many quirks in his career so he had to have a costume capable of handling them.

His boots were made with impact force in mind. They're steel capped and heavily padded on the inside making them comfortable and useful. Not to mention the blades hidden within them.

Well, Izuku had hidden blades all over in inconspicuous places, it was necessary for maximum efficiency with his quirk.

His world once again moves in slow motion as he looks over the class from behind his mask and hood.

They're all surprised or excited at the view of the 15-year-old pro hero.

Kaminari's and Jirou's jaws have dropped.

Iida and Momo look on with awe in their eyes.

Aoyama was sparkling as usual but he also had a sparkle in his eyes as he looked at Izuku.

Ashido, Ochako and Sero were excited, visibly on the verge of exploding.

Bakugou seemed mostly indifferent, except...Was that pride in his eyes? Why would he be proud when looking at Izuku?

Tsuyu seems impressed but also mostly indifferent.

Ojirou, Kirishima and Satou, the more well-versed close-combat fighters, were all incredibly impressed with Izuku, probably having heard all of his escapades during the Hero Licensing Exam.

Shoji's and Todoroki's expressions were unreadable, as usual. Both of them were wearing masks after all, well...One of them was wearing a literal mask.

Tokoyami...Erm...He seemed impressed. Maybe? It was tough to tell with his inhuman features.

Monoma seemed most inspired of all, maybe due to some of the similarities between their quirks. Izuku must really have a good effect on him.

Toru's expression was...Well...Izuku had no idea.

"You've all probably already heard about him, considering how famous he got right out the gate."

"Go on, introduce yourself." He whispered to Izuku.

The 15-year-old grabbed some chalk and turned around to write on the blackboard.

'The Emerald Hero: Valor' were the words he ended up scribbling on the board, deliberately trying to make his handwriting look at least slightly different from his usual.

_'Okay, stop stalling for time, take a deep breath.'_ he does exactly that _'And put on a show, you've got to act differently.'_

"It's nice to meet all of you hero hopefuls!"

"I'll be starting here as a quirk advisor, tutor and."

"Well, I'm basically an all-around helper, the job description was a little vague, but who am I to pass up a job at U.A High."

He laughs, shocked at the fact he's been able to keep up the charade for even this long.

He expected it to be harder.

"You'll probably be seeing a lot of me, taking some weight of All Might's shoulders is pretty important. Our Symbol has enough to deal with as is, not to mention he's not gonna be getting any younger so we need to support him too."

"Anyway, Eraser?"

The tired pro-hero turns toward him.

"D'you mind if I answer their questions if they have any that is?

"Keep it short, we have a little time before we have to get to the USJ."

"Alright!" He says outgoingly.

"Raise your hands if you've got a question to ask me!"

Most students have raised their hand.

"Oh?"

"You're nosy."

"Let's start with you, class rep."

"What hero course did you attend to become a hero at such a young age?" Iida says confidently, waving his hands for emphasis as he usually does.

"Well...Erm. I was actually scouted from a general course at a fairly no-name Hero Academy. They pulled me from the general course and decided I was fit to be a pro and threw me right into the examination with no preparation." He's only half lying there.

The "general course" comment has a lot of students gasping, some hands drop.

Probably going to ask the same question.

"How about... Kaminari, what d'you wanna know?"

"What even is your quirk?"

"Ah, I guess that hasn't been disclosed. My quirk is quite strange, I don't completely understand it myself as of now." Also technically not a complete lie "It seems to be some kind of adaptation or copying quirk, that or maybe a roulette quirk. No, that's too random. It's an adaptation and copying quirk, let's go with that."

Some more hands drop, only 2 students have their hands up now.

Kirishima and Ojirou.

"Alright, after you two we'll get going to the bus."

"Kirishima?"

"How d'you beat three pro heroes? That's super manly!"

"Oh...Well. I kind of went into the exam thinking I'd fail if I didn't hold back. So I decided to go full steam ahead, I managed to hatch out several plans that could've worked and decided which one to go with as the fight unfolded. I originally wanted to take out Jeanist first since he had a strong quirk that he could attack me with from afar, then I would take out Gun Head because he was a mixed fighter and less tough than Orca would be."

"But my first attack failed due to Jeanist's quick thinking so I had to find a way to get rid of them one at a time because just like your homeroom teacher I don't handle groups very well, anyway, I was going to take out Gun Head after throwing Jeanist at him but Orca stopped me so I thought 'Well might as well take Orca out.' I-"

"You're going to run out of time for the last question if you don't hurry up, Valor."

"AH! Right, sorry. My explanation ran on. Basically, careful planning and staying cool."

His rambling and analytical nature really reminded 1-A of someone... Just where has their green-haired friend been these past two days?

"Alright, sorry you had to wait 'til last Ojirou, but I have a feeling the answer to your question will run on a little too."

"That's okay, I don't mind. What martial arts did you learn and how long did you practice for?"

"Ah, I was a bit of a street child. Often getting into skirmishes, so part of my experience comes from that. Formal training and practice though... I learned some kickboxing, some flips but other than that most of my fighting style is just adapted from other pros like Eraser, All Might et cetera. My style depends vastly on what my quirk decides to be like in the moment. I can't really fight like Snipe does if my quirk is some kind of pyrokinesis or some strength enhancement."

"I hope that explains it well enough."

"Yes, thank you very much."

"Okay!" Izuku is a little exhausted from keeping the confident and outgoing alter ego this long, how was he going to keep it up for the entirety of the trip? "Let's get going then!"

* * *

The bus trip is mostly quiet due to Aizawa telling the kids to let 'Valor' relax a little.

Telling them the first day on the job was likely getting to him a little, not to mention he was only their age.

Once they get to the USJ they meet up with thirteen who gives an eloquent and impressive speech about quirk use for good and not evil, Izuku takes notes, tapping away at the screen in the arm of his costume, a touch that a certain 'Mei Hatsume' had added when he mentioned note-taking on the go. He suggested a secure pouch for a small notebook but she insisted on the computer in his costume.

Well, it was useful as it could show his vital signs and sensors all over his costume would forward any damage reports to the PDA in his costume, that included costume damage, internal damage to Izuku's body and some external damage.

He kept tapping away until his [Sonic Hearing] picked something up. A strange noise coming from the fountain in the central plaza of the USJ.

His head whipped around toward it. Some students and the two pros turned toward his sudden motion.

He was getting a bad feeling about this.

"Eraser."

"We're under attack."

It was a long stretch but Izuku's instincts were screaming and the beginnings of a purple vortex down at the plaza were familiar to him. He'd seen the villain with that warping quirk.

"Are you sure?" Aizawa asked as he pulled his goggles over his eyes.

"Positive, I recognise the quirk. It's a warping quirk, its user is a certain 'Kurogiri' who has been a fairly underground villain."

Once the swirling vortex was fully formed Izuku became aware of the tens. No, hundreds of individuals with quirks inside of it.

"What's going on, has the training already started?" Kirishima is curious, but none the wiser as to the danger they are in.

"I thought we were practising rescue?" Kaminari is also not aware.

"They're villains!"

The class seems terrified, to fight villains merely a few days after starting the hero course is a misfortune.

"E-Eraser..."

"What do you see?"

"There are hundreds of them..." Izuku's voice is barely a whisper as despair sets in his stomach.

"Thirteen, Valor!"

"Protect the students!"

Aizawa takes a running start and jumps towards the villains who are pouring out from the gate.

"WAIT! YOU'RE NOT SUITED TO FIGHTING BIG GROUPS LIKE THAT!"

Valor shouts after him, but it's no use.

"Damnit!"

Despite all odds Eraser manages to deal with them one by one, but, Izuku knows it won't last. His eyes will get dry, he'll have to blink more often and that's when the villains will attack him.

But he has to focus on the students.

He has to keep them safe, they're his students now too.

More importantly than that though, they're his friends.

"Alright! Class 1-A!" Valor shouts above their scared voices, garnering their attention "Follow Thirteen out the facility, I'll cover your retreat!"

Thirteen starts herding the class towards the door as Valor looks at the fight unfolding below them at the central plaza.

There were three villains giving Eraserhead a wide berth one simply observing him, analysing him. His glow, his quirk... Felt depraved, restless, unyielding.

The other was... He hurt to look at. Not only physically but the confused glow coming from him. It made no sense. His glow, no...His **glows**, two distinct feelings, colors. Merging in one second and ripping free from one another in the second.

And the third... Izuku looks over, expecting to see a purple haze.

Nothing greets him in its stead.

Wait.

_'Kurogiri is gone? Shit!'_

"This is very strange." A deep voice emanates from behind Izuku.

"All Might was supposed to be here today and yet I see no sign of him."

Izuku whips around and sees a swirling purple form with yellow eyes staring back at him.

"It seems the young prodigy is here in his stead."

_'He knows me?'_

'That doesn't matter, they're villains.'

_'Villains who are threatening the students.'_

_'**My** students.'_

_'**My** **friends**.'_

_'And they're not getting out of here without paying for that.'_

"What are you here for, Kurogiri?"

The smoke villain seems surprised at the name call.

"That's right, I know who you are!"

"Well, well, well. Looks like the child prodigy lives up to his name knowledge-wise."

"I wonder how you'll fare against this!"

His deep, bellowing voice rings out as he himself dissipates towards them, intending to consume the children and teachers in his vortex.

_'Damnit! I can't do anything against th-'_

Thirteen jumps in front of Izuku, their quirk activated to turn Kurogiri's suffocating smoke into dust.

And it works...

Not for long.

Soon another warp gate is opening behind Thirteen, Kurogiri intending to redirect Thirteen's black hole against them.

Izuku stands there, powerless.

_'I don't have a quirk for this situation...'_

_'But I can't just stand around...'_

_'_**_THINK!_**_'_

_'YOU'RE **SUPPOSED** TO BE A GENIUS!'_

_'THINK DAMNIT!'_

_'Oh...That's crazy enough that it could work.'_

Izuku's eyes scanned the crowd of students until they met the explosive blond he'd been looking for.

Kacchan.

Of course!

How could he have been so stupid?

"BAKUGOU, I NEED YOUR QUIRK!" Valor shouts, hoping against hope that they'd be fast enough.

"IF YOU SAY SO, TEACH!" explosions like firecrackers go off in the palm of his hand.

Izuku uses his [Mimicry]

"Follow me!"

"Use the strongest explosion you can!"

"BLOW HIM AWAY!"

The warp gate behind Thirteen was fully formed and had begun crumbling their costume, but they could still limit the damage if this worked.

Bakugou and Valor simultaneously used [Explosion].

An ear-piercing sound erupted from their escapade.

A cacophony of flames and smoke.

Neither of them held back any, knowing what was at stake.

The muscles in their arms strained and screamed for mercy as they released their simultaneous attack.

And it worked, blowing Kurogiri back, his concentration wavered and the warp gate behind Thirteen collapsed.

_**So did they.**_

_'**FUCK!**'_

_'We were too late...'_

{Damage report: Lacerations, non-extensive bleeding}

_'Wait...No.'_

Ashido, the first to run to Thirteen's side once they collapsed, calls out. "They've got a pulse! It's weaker than normal!"

Most of the panic was kept out of her voice to make the report as clear as possible. Impressive for a student.

"His tactic will be divide and conquer!"

"He'll split us up all around the USJ leaving the small fry to pick us off one by one!"

"Be cautious of his gates!"

Izuku's research on the League and it's members had paid off, he'd researched them extensively looking to bust their hideout and take their quirks. They weren't like usual villains... Too clever. There must be some mastermind at the top.

"Kaminari! Can you contact the school?"

"No, sir! They're jamming the signal."

_'Of course they were...'_

_'The only choice was getting someone out, but who?'_

_'Thirteen's down, Eraser and I have to stay to help... A student.'_

_'One quick enough to get to U.A...'_

_'Only one man for the job.'_

Izuku smirks behind his mask as he quickly shuffles toward Iida, taking advantage of Kurogiri still trying to gather himself.

"Class rep," Izuku whispers to the taller boy in white armour "I need you to get out and run for backup."

"Eraser and I won't be able to handle this by ourselves, we need the other pros."

"But, sir!" Iida starts "That wou-"

"Would be dishonourable? Stupid. You'll be saving lives by calling for help. No one will hold it against you."

"Wait for us to get you an open-"

"DIE!"

Bakugou's shriek has Izuku turning his head so fast he gave himself whiplash.

And what he sees once he turns gives him a sinking feeling.

Kirishima and Bakugou are in the process of attacking a fully composed Kurogiri.

_'They don't realise they can't hurt him.'_

Deep and bellowing laughter erupts from the smoke.

"You're still children after all. Reckless idiots."

Their attacks go right through him.

And so do the redhead and the blond.

Kacchan.

The villain **took** Kacchan.

"And as for the rest of you. BEGONE!"

_'I have to lower the damage.'_

_'Stop him from taking as many as I can.'_

Before Izuku has time to do anything the mist spreads over the students...

_'No...They're all gone. He **took** them.'_

_'**He took them.**'_

"Sensei!"

_'Shoji?'_

Izuku cast his eyes all over searching for the masked boy.

And once his eyes finally fall on his figure.

He couldn't be any prouder.

Shoji had kept Uraraka from getting captured.

"Ugh."

Izuku's eyes darted to find the source of the noise.

He was wrong.

He definitely hadn't reached maximum pride in this class.

Satou.

Iida.

Sero.

Those three made it through too.

But he still took them.

Fifteen of them.

Fifteen Izuku had gotten to know to various degrees.

Fifteen he cared for.

Fifteen he was responsible for.

**Unforgivable**.

Something in Izuku finally snapped.

"**Kurogiri**."

The venom in Izuku's voice was unlike a hero's.

And he was clenching his already damaged fist.

"**If my students. No, if my friends are hurt."**

**"If your henchmen manage to hurt them, lay even a single scratch on them."**

**"I will hunt you and your pathetic League down."**

All the students that remained had turned back to face Valor, fear visible in their eyes.

But a warmth in their hearts. They could tell Valor would stop at nothing to protect them and it was reassuring.

**"I will chase you relentlessly until every single one of you is history.****"**

**"Not even death will stop me."**

It was tough to tell for sure, but Kurogiri seemed frightened.

The venom, the honesty in Izuku's words.

His threats.

They terrified him.

**"Kids."**

His tone was different.

Not as cold as when he addressed the villain.

More commanding sure, but not cold or frightening.

It spurred them to act.

"We're taking him down."

"He can't change all of his body into smoke, he has a piece of armour in that mist somewhere."

"I'll figure out a way to expose it, I just need your help to give Iida an opening."

"Uraraka, as soon as I expose his physical body use [Zero Gravity] on him."

A curt nod from the brown-haired rosy-cheeked girl follows his order.

"Sero. You'll tape him then pull him back. He'll be weightless so it'll be easy."

"Right." Sero replies.

"Shouji, Satou."

"You two are using brute force to open the door for Iida."

"Got it!" The two reply in tandem.

"Iida, you run like hell and get us help."

"Understood Sensei!"

"Alright. You kids get ready, once I get him dispersed it's your show!"

Izuku turns toward the mist villain.

Fury bubbling away inside him.

Just waiting to boil over.

Not yet... He needed to stay calm for a little longer.

Then he could go wild and take Shigaraki's pawns down one by one.

"Bold of you to discuss strategy in front of your enemy."

"Not even the prior knowledge will save you. If Shigaraki won't turn you to dust after this. **I will**."

Izuku directed his intense glare at the sickly yellow eyes that belonged to his enemy.

**"You're through."**

"[Amplify]!"

_'All I have to do is run around him fast enough to disperse him long enough for Sero to tape him.'_

{Time necessary: 3 seconds}

{Recommended speed: 50 km/h}

Izuku immediately gets started on his plan.

Circling Kurogiri to disperse his mist and stop him from redirecting Sero's tape.

_'Wait until his body shows.'_

_'Abuse your enemy's weakness.'_

_'There!'_

He stops circling so as to not interfere with the next phase of the plan.

"Uraraka!"

"Now!"

Satou and Shouji throw her toward the villain.

Her fingertips make contact and Kurogiri becomes weightless. Helpless and disoriented he has no chance of dodging.

"Sero!"

The boy follows the plan perfectly, effortlessly slinging his tape at the villain. His aim true.

And just as instructed he pulls, Izuku runs toward Sero to help him get Kurogiri out the way.

The other boys do as they were instructed previously.

Satou forcing one door open, Shouji taking the other.

"I'LL BE BACK WITH REINFORCEMENTS!" Can barely be heard as the class rep is gone in a flash.

Success.

Izuku having kept his eyes on Kurogiri vigilantly notices when the villain begins to fold into his own gate and follows.

"Y'all did great, stay here!" he calls as he disappears through the gate.

"Sensei!"

Their voices all blend together before fading completely as he passes through the gate.

"Kurogiri, you idiot!"

"If you weren't our warp gate I'd kill you right now!"

_**'I could take them both out right now.'**_

_**'They wouldn't even realise.'**_

_'No... My priority is the safety of the class.'_

_'I've got to make sure they're fine.' _

"[Amplify]." Izuku mumbles quietly.

_'I recognise all the glows, the emotions their quirks emit.'_

_'I just have to extend the range and the intensity of my quirk sense, boost my [Sonic hearing] too.'_

_'Bakugou and Kirishima, they'll be fine.'_

_'Todoroki has already neutralised the villains, impressive.'_

_'Monoma, Tsuyu and Mineta are in the shipwreck zone. Surrounded. 10 villains.'_

_'Momo, Jirou and Kaminari are in the Mountain zone. 1 villain, they seem unaware of him.'_

_'Koda and Tokoyami are in the storm zone. 7 villains.'_

_'Ojirou and Toru are in the fire zone. 4 villains.'_

_'Aoyama and Ashido, landslide zone. 3 villains.'_

_'25 villains, not counting the ones still in the central plaza.'_

_'I've got work to do.'_

_'But first...'_

**"Shigaraki!" **Izuku growls out as he charges the man in charge.

Izuku gives the scumbag no time to respond as he punches him in the gut, avoiding his hands.

Izuku knew about a lot of villains and their quirks, Shigaraki wasn't an exception.

**"That's just a warning shot."**

Izuku's emerald eyes send a piercing glare at Shigaraki.

**"I'll be right back."**

He disappears in a blur leaving Shigaraki in a daze.

_'Who the he-'_

Before he even has time to finish his thought Izuku returns.

Carrying 10 of Shigaraki's unconscious henchmen effortlessly.

"Your pawns are all decommissioned."

"Someone left garbage just like this all over the USJ."

"This is all I could carry back in one go."

He throws the villains at Shigaraki's feet.

**"You're nex-"**

Izuku's eyes wander beyond Shigaraki's lanky form.

What he sees churns his stomach.

The beaked villain with the exposed brain stands over Aizawa's unmoving form.

**One of Aizawa's arms, bend at a sickening angle, hangs limply in the monster's hands.**

The hatred and boundless fury Izuku feels finally boils over.

The fury burns white hot in his chest.

His hyperactive mind crawls to a stop.

He stops thinking.

And starts acting solely on instinct.

He stops trying to push his limits and instead ignores them completely.

Activating many quirks at once.

Including the ones he stole from Shigaraki's small-fry.

Izuku feels the student's fear, Aizawa's pain.

Rocks around him start levitating.

And fire envelops him.

His muscles start pulsating with power.

And the next moment he's gone altogether.

An explosive bang and a crater left behind is the only evidence he was even there.

The same instant Nomu releases Aizawa although not of its own volition.

His motionless body begins to move by itself, rising in the air and heading toward the entrance.

Another explosion rings out, Nomu's body ripples from some unseen impact.

A small silhouette wreathed in flames appears to be the culprit.

Its arm...**His** arm outstretched after delivering the blow.

"Impossible..." Shigaraki's whispers his scratchy, manic voice low.

"H-He's using multiple quirks."

"**How?**" The villain exclaims.

"Only Sensei should have that power!"

**"Nomu!"**

**"Kill him!"**

The Nomu finally attacks, only to have its fist stopped by a green barrier.

The villain orders, his voice barely holding steady.

"Shigaraki..."

_**"What?" **_

"We should leave, there's no guarantee Nomu will win."

"And if it doesn't... We really **will** be next."

Shigaraki scratches his neck viciously as he growls.

And then he suddenly stops.

"You're right."

"Get us home, Kurogiri."

The purple haze envelops them both as they disappear, leaving the Nomu to fend for itself against Izuku.

Izuku was still fighting the Nomu.

Two unnamed strength enhancement quirks, his muscles tear and ripple with power,

[Air Blast], his strikes imbued, he was pushing the Nomu away,

[Blaze], he began to steam,

[Electrokinesis], lightning arced across his body, the energy bursting to leave his body,

[Telekinesis], rocks still levitating menacingly,

[Forcefield], an ultimate shield at the ready,

[Rush], adrenaline flooded his system,

[Reflect], Nomu's punches redirected,

[Blade], Izuku's knuckles were razor sharp,

[Size Manipulation], Izuku stood just as tall as the Nomu,

[Double], his clone was running around the USJ piling the unconscious villains up high,

[Emotion Sense], awe... The student's awe. They saw him facing the Nomu down, the monster to kill All Might and they were astonished... There was something else... From the Nomu. **Pain, hopelessness... Beneath all the experimentation it was human. It was once human.**

_**'There's only one monster who could do such a thing to a human. All For One... He's back.'**_

Izuku's awareness returned to him in the nick of time.

He hadn't been holding back... He could endanger all his students.

He can't fight this thing without holding back here.

His power was too destructive.

He charges into the Nomu, picking it up effortlessly, using [Telekinesis] to lighten the load.

He pulled back... And launched it through the dome of the USJ.

Then jumped right after it.

Leaving the few students who had gathered around closest to him (watching the fight) in a daze.

The Nomu leaves a crater in the forest it had landed in.

Several kilometres from the USJ.

No chance he'd hurt anyone here.

Izuku lands alongside it.

_'All limiters off now...'_

_'It's now or never, I won't be able to beat this thing unless I give it my all.'_

He roars in pain.

{Natural limiters: Off}

{Third degree burns imminent}

{Muscles, tendons and ligaments torn in several locations}

{24 bones fractured, shattered or broken}

{Brain overheating, seizures imminent}

{One minute remaining before total shut down}

_'One minute?'_

_'More than enough.'_

The flames enveloping Izuku grow in size and heat.

Blue flames dancing around him.

The blades on his knuckles grow smaller and smaller.

Sharper and sharper.

No amount of adrenaline in his blood could dull the immense pain all of the quirks were putting him through.

But it's worth it.

He had driven Shigaraki and Kurogiri away.

And was going to neutralise the threat to All Might.

No amount of pain would make him think any differently.

Saving people, especially people he knew.

It was exhilarating.

_'Focus!'_

{40 seconds remaining}

The Nomu charged.

Its fist met with Izuku's.

The impact sends ripples through both of their arms.

{2 further fractures}

_'What is this?'_

_'None of my physical attacks work.'_

_'The impacts have little eff...'_

_'Oh...'_

_'Shock Absorption.'_

_'He has two glows... One of them must be another quirk.'_

_'But I haven't seen it being used.'_

{30 seconds remaining}

_'Well... Blunt force doesn't work, blades should.'_

Izuku's arm transforms into a sharp blade.

And he swings.

Taking Nomu's arm clean off.

Only for it to grow back, like a lizard's tail.

_'Well...That mystery is solved.'_

_'Time to do something I **will** regret.'_

"[AMPLIFY]!"

Izuku's feels his quirk grow stronger.

And he pulls.

Exchanges blows with Nomu.

Pulls again.

Exchanges blows.

Going back and forth at the speed of sound.

Until finally he pulls one of the quirks free from within Nomu.

Time to find out which one.

He pours all of his strength enhancement into his left hand, the one he hadn't turned into a blade.

And strikes Nomu in the gut.

Nothing.

{Disclocated shoulder and elbow, 5 further fractures}

**Mostly** nothing.

_'Still got_ _shock absorption.'_

_'Which means I took its regeneration.'_

_'Normally I wouldn't hurt another human this drastically...'_

_'But this thing is in constant pain.'_

_'Wait...'_

_'I-I...I don't have to...'_

_'I don't have to kill it...'_

_'I could just.'_

_'Just fry its brain.'_

_'Free it from the pain.'_

_'But keep it alive.'_

He redirects the strength enhancing quirks into his legs, using all four he has stolen.

And he rockets towards the Nomu.

{Legs broken in 2 places}

He smashes into the Nomu.

Clims up it slightly.

Legs on its shoulders.

Hands on its exposed brain.

{3 seconds remaining}

"I'm sorry."

{2 seconds remaining}

"So, so sorry..." tears start streaming down his face as his [Blaze] shuts off.

{1 second remaining}

"[Amplify]." He whispers and releases the electricity stored within his body, careful calculations allow him to fry its brain but not kill it.

**_'I'm sorry, I'm sorry I'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'ms-_**'

{0 seconds remaining}

{Seizure}

{Body shut down}

{Redirecting resources to essential bodily functions}

{Emergency protocol}

{Estimated chance of surviv-

* * *

Class 1-A had been given a week off to recuperate after all of that.

It did suffer a single loss in the aftermath.

Mineta had decided to leave the hero course, instead, he headed to general education.

Aizawa had been badly hurt, but it wasn't life-threatening.

Thirteen was in a similar situation, badly damaged but guaranteed to live.

The same **couldn't** be said for Valor...

He had gone too far this time.

Burns covered his body top to bottom, ranging from first to third degree.

His bones had been unable to hold up, a plethora of fractures and breaks remained.

Dislocated elbow and arm.

Muscles, tendons and ligaments badly damaged.

Multiple seizures.

All of the class saw what he did.

Helping Iida escape to get help.

Saving all the students from the remaining villains.

Scaring the main villains off.

And defeating the Nomu.

They were amazed at him... He was no older than them.

Yet he held such incredible power.

But they all realised one thing.

His quirk couldn't be adaptation.

It couldn't be copying like Monoma.

He used multiple quirks, without a doubt.

But they'd get an explanation **when** Valor-sensei returned.

A definite 'when' not an 'if'.

They believed in his survival.

* * *

A week later, First day back for Class 1-A

They were silent.

All of them.

Including the loudest pupils.

Ashido.

Kaminari.

Sero.

All sat in their places.

And then Aizawa comes in, some bandages covering one side of his face, his arm in a sling.

With All Might and a student in tow.

They're quiet too, the sight of All Might doesn't manage to stir up anything from the class.

"Welcome back," Aizawa says in his usual tired tone.

"I hope that break was suffici-"

He stops in the middle of his sentence confusing his class.

"No... Course it wasn't sufficient."

"For any of us."

He looks at his class tiredly. But there was a glimmer of sympathy and sadness in those eyes.

"But I hope the good news I've got will help."

"Thirteen and Valor are both fine."

"Thirteen has already healed."

"They're back already."

The class, Ashido more so than the others, perk up a little.

"Valor woke up."

At that the class erupts with noise.

The boy had been in a coma since he had fought the Nomu.

And hearing that he was fine took a massive weight off their shoulders

"He's due to be back once he finishes he-"

Aizawa is interrupted by the class door suddenly bursting open.

"SORRY I'M LATE!"

The class gasps loudly.

Aizawa looks over in disbelief.

All Might's face is unreadable.

"Eraser."

"I have something to say to the class."

"Do you mind if I take homeroom today?"

"I'll do the other announcements first."

Valor's eyes are gleaming with determination.

A silent conversation passes as Aizawa looks into those eyes.

He yields his spot immediately once he understands the importance of what Izuku is about to say.

Aizawa stays in the room standing just behind Izuku.

"Right! I'll start with general announcements then I'll talk about the stuff that happened at the USJ and explain myself."

"First of all, Mineta has left the hero course."

"Eraser personally selected Shinsou to join in his stead."

Valor turns to look at Shinsou.

"Welcome to the hero course Shinsou, I can't wait to find out about you, your quirk and what kind of hero you are. That being said, you're free to take your seat."

"I obviously, technically, shouldn't be here yet. But I'll explain that too."

"One more announcement!"

"I've gotten a bit of a rank up, ehehe."

He laughs almost nervously... Very out of character for the outgoing hero.

"I'm now your 'gym' teacher." he air quotes.

"Which basically means I get to train you, it'll almost be like a second hero training class, 'cept I'll focus on physical strength and quirk strengthening more than All Might will."

"I'm basically going to be your drill sergeant."

The class shudders.

"But."

"Enough of that."

"You guys deserve an explanation."

"That goes for you too, All Might."

"I guess," his voice changes as he releases his mask, the voice changer automatically turning off "this is where I should begin."

He pulls back his hood.

Class 1-A stares at him dumbfounded.

Emerald eyes stare back.

"I'm Valor."

Izuku says, class 1-A still in a daze from the fact that Izuku had been the person behind the mask this whole time.

"Which leads me on to the next thing."

"A-All of you knew me as 'the quirkless genius in gen ed' or something close to that."

"Truth is... I've never been quirkless."

"I've just kept my quirk hidden."

"Since it lets me take what belongs to others."

"[All For One]"

"The ability to steal quirks and give them to others."

* * *

Note:

Probably took me longer than necessary.

Izuku will not remain this OP, it's just cause he needed to stop holding back in this instance.

Some of his quirks have now just become completely unusable because he pushed them, not to mention the ones he'll hand off.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed.

This'll be the most action-heavy we get for a while.

Thank you very much for all of the support :3


	6. Chapter 6

THANK YOU FOR 100 FAVOURITES.

I didn't really expect this to go even this far, I'm so glad I was proven wrong. :3

Well, without any further ado (mainly since I have no substantial pre-chapter notes there's more end notes), here's chapter 5 of RH.

* * *

_'They're going to **hate** me.'_

_'**Reject** me.'_

_'Of course, they will...'_

_'**Who in their right mind** would think that someone like me could be a hero?'_

The class stared at Izuku, now without his mask, in disbelief.

Their faces unreadable, blank.

Aizawa looked back to Izuku making sure he wasn't panicking.

But Izuku has long since learned to mask his emotions and show as little weakness as possible.

The less he showed the less likely he was to be harassed or bullied, after all.

The first to speak, however, wasn't any of the students.

It was All Might...

Izuku had forgotten about _that_...

All Might had every right to **despise** Izuku's very existence.

He was the spawn of the man who had murdered All Might's mentor in cold blood after all.

"[All For One], you say?"

The man is audibly distraught.

"Why such a name, young Midoriya?"

"[All For One], everything for one person."

"I-It's... It's the epitome of greed."

"T-That's the meaning behind the name."

Izuku answers without turning around, too afraid of what he'd see if he did.

"That name is unfitting," Izuku startles as a big yet gentle hand lands on his shoulder "for you that is, had it been a villain's quirk I would agree with the name and its origins."

"But you young Midoriya."

"Are kind beyond measure."

"You took your misfortune."

"And forced it to work."

All Might coaxes Izuku into turning to face him.

He finally gives in and does so.

And on All Might's face is a smile which really shouldn't shake Izuku as much as it does considering that All Might smiles all the time.

But the issue isn't the smile itself, it's the kind of smile it is.

It isn't reassuring.

Well... Not in the way his usual smile, the one he wears when saving people, is.

That smile says 'You're safe now'.

This smile is... different. Kinder, more genuine.

And it almost makes Izuku drop his guard and start crying.

Almost.

"And **that**, young Midoriya, is the epitome of heroics."

"Turning someone's misfortune on its head. Sometimes even your own."

"It doesn't matter how villainous you believe your quirk is because your character is one of a true hero."

Damnit!

He will not cry.

He refuses.

Not in front of the class.

His students.

His friends.

"Yeah Midoriya!"

Kirishima yells and Izuku jumps at the volume then turns to face the class once more.

"What you did proves that you're a hero!"

"No-one who had any bit of evil in them would fight the Nomu with everything they had like that!"

_'NO, I'm not gonna cry.'_

"You're too nice for us to be scared of you Deku, we were just surprised."

Uraraka says loudly.

"IDIOT DEKU! What did I always tell you?"

"No-one's gonna give a shit about your quirk since you're so fucking obnoxiously nice."

_'Ah fuck...I'm gonna cry.'_

"You see Midoriya," a tired voice from the corner of the room calls "you have nothing to worry about."

Izuku turns to look at Aizawa.

"T-Thank you Aizawa-sensei," Izuku says, bawling full force. "A-And the rest of you..."

"Thank you so m-much," it's getting hard to understand Izuku between the sobs "I-I'll continue with my explanation i-in a m-moment."

After a long while, Izuku manages to compose himself enough to continue talking.

"R-Right," even if his voice is still shaky and a little raw from the tears "So, you know that I'm a pro-hero and that I have a quirk..."

"And even if you don't need to know this next thing I think you deserve to."

Aizawa snaps his head to look back at Izuku, knowing exactly what he was about to tell them, his eyes clearly portrayed his question "Are you sure about this?".

Izuku answered Aizawa's unspoken question with a simple nod.

"I...want to explain where I got the quirks, well... not counting the ones you saw me steal during the USJ attack."

"But first, you all know of The Headhunter, right?"

Everyone nods vigorously, Shinsou's eyes begin to sparkle slightly...

Gears in Izuku's head start turning trying to figure out why he'd have such a reaction to the name.

"The leading theory in the news is that his quirk is [Permanent Erasure], and the explanation is that his power doesn't inhibit your quirk factor temporarily, like Aizawa-sensei, but completely destroys it."

More nods all around the class.

"Well... That's not how it works either."

"Some of the villains and thugs hunted by him retain some 'organs' or physical features that aren't directly linked to their quirk but are caused by it."

Realization dawns on a few student's faces.

Iida.

Momo.

Todoroki.

Shinsou.

"And that means their quirk factor wasn't completely destroyed."

"Which leads to only two explanations."

"The Headhunter's quirk damages an individual's quirk factor permanently but doesn't destroy it. Which means they may still be able to activate their quirk but it would be different or more difficult to use."

"Or that The Headhunter's quirk is the ability to take someone's quirk."

Disbelief washes over the class again.

"I'm The Headhunter."

"The vigilante who has taken the world by storm."

A long pause.

"But I'm also Valor."

"The youngest hero in the world."

Izuku's eyes sparkle with half-formed tears.

"But... most importantly. I'm Izuku."

"And I hope these facts won't change your view of me."

He looks to the ground in shame.

"**Deku.**" Bakugou hisses dangerously.

"WE."

"DON'T."

"CARE."

"You're still the same old nerdy Deku."

Izuku smiles despite the fact no one can see his face.

"But I shouldn't be the one talking since I already knew."

"W-What?!" Izuku's head whips back up at those words.

"You used your quirk on me when it manifested remember?"

"I know how it fucking works. So you think a Vigilante who leaves people quirkless won't make me ask questions? Or connect dots? Combined with the fact that you left your house late most nights?"

"And I realised it was you behind that dumb mask too!"

Izuku looks up in disbelief.

"Seriously though 'Valor'?"

"That's way too generic and shitty."

"Just call yourself 'Deku' now that we all know."

"T-That might not be that bad of an idea..."

Aizawa shuffles out of his yellow sleeping bag and starts walking back toward the podium, Izuku steps away letting him take his spot.

"All right, with that out of the way, we can start the day."

"That one-on-one tutoring with Deku-**sensei **begins today, you'll be pulled out of the classes you're doing best at so as to not sabotage your chances in those you're bad at."

Izuku pouts lightly when Aizawa calls him Sensei.

"Do your best, those sessions will be highly specialised and extremely helpful."

"It would be illogical to not make the most of them."

First period is science, physics specifically.

So the students Izuku will be tutoring in this time are Bakugou (he's surprisingly good at physics, although it shouldn't really be surprising he clearly needs to calculate a lot quicker to use his quirk effectively not to mention things like momentum and energy) Momo (who again needs to know physics and chemistry well to be able to use her quirk to its utmost).

Izuku planned these sessions to be fairly long and extensive so he'd spend a good 30 minutes per student to make sure he covers as much as he can.

He'd rather waste time than not give the upcoming heroes the practice and guidance they all deserve.

Part of the reason he pushed himself to come in early (while some of his bones, muscles and other body parts were still healing) was the fact that he could finally talk to Bakugou during/after their half-hour training session.

Seeing as Bakugou's quirk output is already pretty high (he won't need to increase it much higher overall for it to be pro-level) their training will mostly be developing some creativity with Bakugou's quirk along with sparring and some brainstorming of gear for Bakugou's costume.

Izuku would develop it himself but he doesn't have a license to actually distribute his support gear.

He'd have to talk to Power Loader about getting one, it would be more helpful to design this kind of stuff himself (maybe with help from some support course students or Power Loader himself if he got stuck on something).

About 5 minutes into 1-A's first lesson Izuku peeks into their classroom (having used that five minutes to make sure that his preparations for the first tutoring sessions of today were ready) "Bakugou? Come with me please."

Izuku is back in his hero persona, acting more confident than he feels.

The mask is useful and makes him feel more comfortable with what he's doing.

It lets him smile without any of the nerves he'd usually show.

"Oi Deku," Bakugou whispers quietly "Why are you still acting weird?"

"I have to stay in character, Kacchan!" Izuku whispers right back, pouting lightly under his mask.

"Pfft, fine."

"What are you even gonna teach me, Sensei?"

Izuku slips back into his hero persona seamlessly.

"Just refer to me with my hero name instead of Sensei" Izuku reminds on instinct.

"Your quirk output is high enough for now, maybe even up until your third year if not longer."

"So we'll focus on support gear that improves your efficiency and your creativity."

"Your quirk is very strong but your use of it is stiff."

"It has to be more flexible."

"And thanks to my [Mimicry] we get to experiment with your quirk twice as much and twice as fast!"

"My aim is to help you develop at least one ultimate move in this session and then have you practice it in your off-time and maybe in the next tutoring session I have with you."

"And my side goal is to think up some practical gear for you!"

He smiles brightly at Bakugou. Which isn't really all that helpful considering his face is still covered, but the blond gets the message.

"Tch, you've probably got all of the sessions already planned out don't you, overachiever?"

"Yup!" He says practically oozing happiness.

"Typical." the blond murmurs.

The rest of the walk is completed in relative silence, with Izuku remarking about some things and Bakugou responding suitably.

Until they got to where the 1-A quirk aptitude test happened.

_ 'God, it's only been a week since then...too much can happen in the span of a single week.'_

"Alright." Izuku lets his facade down a little.

"Let's start with a s-"

Izuku cuts himself off when he looks back at Bakugou's face, devoid of any sneers, fight or emotion.

Just blank.

"K-K-K-Kacchan?"

Izuku stutters.

"A-Are you okay?"

"Deku," Bakugou locks eyes with Izuku "You wanna ask me something, don't you?"

Izuku freezes in place.

_'Buuusteeed.'_

"Ehehe," Izuku laughs nervously, scratching at the back of his neck "How could you tell?"

"You forget I've known you for like ten years, dipshit."

"Now spill."

"W-Well...I just wanted to t-talk about the whole situation concerning," he gestures at himself in a wide motion "me and all of the stuff I've done."

"I'm not pissed at you, Deku. Or sad, I knew you'd tell me sooner or later."

"And it's pretty fucking cool too."

Izuku lets out a breath he didn't realise he was holding.

These kinds of genuine moments between them were few and far between, and Bakugou would deny them ever occurring to anyone else.

But the fact that Bakugou spoke to Izuku like this (only Izuku, no-one else ever got to see this side of him, probably not even his parents), on equal footing; no hostility whatsoever and perhaps the closest Bakugou could get to an actual smile.

Izuku loves these moments most...well. He loves saving people most, but this is a very close second.

The first 10 minutes they spent on sparring to see if there were any obvious places they could make improvements in Bakugou's fighting style.

There wasn't much that could be done to improve it, at least not now. The remainder of the session was spent on better things.

Together Bakugou and Izuku managed to come up with a new special move!

It involved Bakugou manipulating his explosions in a way that produced as much thick smoke as possible. They dubbed it Smoke Grenade, not particularly creative or original but it'll do nicely.

But that new move brought issues of it's own up. The smoke would also blind Bakugou... Unless they upgraded his gear.

"Goggles!" Izuku had exclaimed from behind his mask "Thermal vision, night vision and everything in between!"

To which Bakugou agreed "As long as they don't look stupid".

So Izuku spent rest of their session drawing out a design on the (fixed) PDA incorporated into his sleeve while Bakugou practised and experimented with his smoke grenade.

Izuku's logic with Bakugou's move set was less focused on power and more on speed and utility. While it was pointless to build up someone's terrible/bad skills and it made more sense to focus on what they're better at that didn't apply to Bakugou. Since his speed and utility wasn't zero, he just doesn't have many moves that use it. Well, not anymore. Smoke Grenade was his utility and Blast Rush was his speed, with the addition of maybe one or two more utility or speed moves he'd be good in that regard, then they could work on making him more powerful.

Building his quirk up.

Building his physical strength up.

Building a practical costume that was capable of handling his power.

And then he'd truly be pro hero material, agencies will be fighting over him!

Speaking of agencies... Izuku would need to sign up to some agency or build his own. Considering how new of a hero he is constructing his own agency would be tough, signing up to one would be easier seeing as he bears the title of 'youngest hero on the planet' that alone would get him offers (not to mention his powerful 'adaptation' quirk). But there's no guarantee those agencies would be reputable or even suitable. And seeing as he's working at U.A his hands are already full...

Maybe one of his co-workers could point him in the right direction, they are all seasoned veterans of the hero scene after all!

**"Deku!" **Bakugou yells earning a yelp from a startled Izuku "The session is supposed to be 30 minutes long right?"

"Yup?" Izuku says - asks? - tilting his head in confusion.

"It's already been 30 minutes dumbass, session's over."

"Oh!" Izuku jumps a little at the realisation "You're right, head back to class and tell Yaoyorozu to meet me here, please."

"Tch, fine." He tries sounding pissed off but fails, clearly happy with his progress and the productivity of the session. He would've taken his time getting to class but decided against walking as leisurely as he'd been planning so that the next student showed up on time to Deku-sensei's tutoring.

He doesn't even knock on 1-A's door just walks straight in.

"Oi, vice rep!" Momo perks up at Bakugou's mention of her "You're up."

He says with a grin? snarl? some weird mixture of the two?

Momo quickly shuffles out of her seat and says a quiet "thank you" as she hurries past Bakugou.

_'Fuck is she in such a hurry for?'_

_'It's just fucking Deku.'_

* * *

Alright, bit of a boring chapter, hope it isn't too bad, I haven't really gotten a friend to beta it so I hopefully haven't made too many mistakes. (feel free to point any out, criticism is great too I very much enjoy seeing what you all think.)

Next chapter is going to feature Momo's training, Izuku finding an agency to sign up to and maybe some other stuff.

If you guys want the training sessions to be written more in-depth, I could detail them in some kind of an 'omake' chapter.

Once again thank you for so many follows and favourites (almost up to 120 .) and for reading.

On a side note, I had an idea for a third MHA fic which is more original than CA and RH.

It'll still be quirk Izuku without OFA which is more or less what all of my fics are but I think some of you will enjoy reading that one too .

So if you're interested keep a look out, it'll be up sometime this month (it'll prolly be updated monthly so I have enough time to forge something decent)


	7. Chapter 7

As Izuku was finishing his training with Momo, who had arrived much sooner than Izuku was expecting her. She ended up startling him quite badly (he had Momo focus on multitasking over anything else, creating objects quickly would be a bonus but nowhere near as great as fighting while creating, they made some progress. Momo was capable of creating a couple of paper clips while Izuku was attacking her with all he had, minus the quirks, he was honestly expecting it to be half-formed or incorrectly created items this early in her training but the paperclips were perfect. Baby steps would pay off eventually.)  
But then Eraserhead appeared to call him to the staff room, meaning that Izuku would have to delay the next training session.

"So, erm. What is this about Aizawa-sensei?"

"Just Aizawa, or Eraserhead. I'm not your teacher anymore."

"Ehehe," Izuku laughed nervously as he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly "So. Am I in trouble?"

Eraser slowed down and narrowed his eyes at Izuku over his shoulder "Why would you be?"

"Erm... I don't know?"

"Pft, well, you're not. We just need to discuss things with you at length."

And so the rest of the walk to the staff room was spent in silence as Izuku tried desperately to figure out why he was being called already.

Any worry Izuku had was not alleviated by the fact that every staff member's eyes were on him as Eraser opened the door.

"Problem child's here, take it away." Aizawa grunted as he took his place in the corner, zipping himself up in his yellow sleeping bag.

"Midoriya." All Might, in his less muscular form, started.

"Y-Yes!?" Izuku said, stiff as a board.

"Calm down, young man, we're just here to discuss the more mundane parts of hero life with you."

Izuku gave the blond man a quizzical look.

"Namely the issue of a hero agency."

Izuku stopped fidgeting, stopped doing anything in fact.

He was completely still with a blank look on his face.

"Y-You forgot didn't you?"

A slow nod.

Followed by light-hearted laughter of the various staff members (and annoyed grunts from the hero turned caterpillar in the corner of the room).

All Might just sighed.

"We already talked it over a little, assuming that you did forget to organise anything. And we came to a few conclusions. You could either make your own agency like Hawks did, or you could join one of the agencies we manage or are involved with. To prevent you from being taken advantage of by shadier characters."

A moment of contemplative silence for Izuku. Running through both options, simulating different situations.

"I don't think I'd be capable of doing the same thing Hawks did, he's more of a prodigy than me when it comes to this I just have a grossly overpowered quirk. It'll probably be better to join one of your agencies... I-If none of you m-mind that is." Izuku exclaimed, flustered, waving his hands around his head.

"Well, you heard him." Ectoplasm said.

"Normally we'd be fighting over you right now, Midoriya, but we've already agreed who's getting to keep you." Midnight responded.

"That would be me!" All Might said in his muscle form.

"W-W-W-W..." Izuku tried to form a coherent sentence but failed miserably.

"Great, now you broke him, we told you to be more gentle with the news." Midnight deadpanned.

"Hahaha! He'll be fine! Isn't that right, young Midoriya?" All Might said simultaneously slapping Izuku's back, which somehow managed to fix his overheating brain.

"B-B-But you can't take me in! I'm just a rookie hero, All Might!"

"Who said I can't? I'm taking you in, you'll get along nicely with my sidekick, I can already tell he'll like you."

And so the conversation was done and Izuku now belonged to an agency.

However the gears didn't quite click in his head. Not enough to realise how big of a splash this would make in the media, All Might rarely accepted heroes to his agency, definitely not ones who were as eye-grabbing as Izuku. The youngest hero, who managed to effectively ace his hero license exam.

The media were going to hound the two of them for a while.

Oh boy...

* * *

Sorry about this being so short, I just wanted to get this half-finished chapter somewhat 'done'.

I don't really wanna write the rest of this arc right now since it gets preeeetty hype so I really have to be 100% there for it and with my GCSEs going on (formal qualification in the U.K), despite my lack of studying, I'm not really 100% here so I'll write the rest of this whole shitfest when I'm prepared to really go for it.

It is going to be 2 arcs overlapping (one manga only so far) so yeah, pretty hype, the other arc is Hero killer. Although I'm gonna do it in a different way, possibly.

Sorry for my inactivity as a whole, I'll try to get a little bit done here and there and post when the chapters are a little longer. Altho that won't apply to this fic since it needs more care and attention, I'll prolly do some of Pantheon's exposition and maybe finish that almost finished second chapter of Eternity. No promises.

I'll be back soon, after these next two weeks of exams I get a few months worth of break so I'll use some of that on writing.

Thank you to anyone sticking around despite my inactivity.

:3


	8. Chapter 8

"Okay, that's it for training today!" Izuku said, clapping his hands loudly for attention (using a strength-enhancer to boost the sound) "Remember, the Sports Festival begins on Monday with the first-year section." A cheer bursts out from class 1-A, he waits for it to subside "As for my advice. Well, it's different than the other teachers. Take it easy and have as much fun as you can. Yes, it's a hiring opportunity, but you'll have others of those across your time at U.A. This is still a Sports Festival so have fun with it if that means giving it your all and feeling your muscles ache afterwards then go ahead. If that means trying out new skills and seeing if they work and just messing around a little, go ahead. That being said, if you do get injured Recovery Girl will be present to help. Dismissed!"

Most of 1-A scatters, a couple remain with Izuku (masked and acting, he's their teacher after all). Shinsou and Kacchan.

"Well, what did you want to ask, Shinsou?" Izuku (Valour) asks with a smile, despite the fact he can't see under the visor of his helmet.

"Is there a way for me to be exempt from the event?" Shinsou mumbles quietly, and slowly.

"E-Erm," he's caught off guard by the question, he coughs to buy a second to regain composure "Yes there is but you'd need a damn good reason for us to do so."

Shinsou just looks at Izuku for a second without saying anything "It's about my quirk," Brainwash, Izuku remembers immediately "It's not really well suited for being in the spotlight."

"You think it's villainous, don't you?" Shinsou physically recoils a little _'Bingo.' _Izuku thinks.

He gives Shinsou a second to respond. He doesn't, so Izuku just presses on.

"Listen Shinsou. Your quirk is incredible. It can stop a hostage situation; a fight; a riot, any and all situation really. With just speech, I have no doubt in my mind you will be an amazing hero. You just have to get out there and let go of your fear. People may judge you like that, those people are wrong. If the heroes that are out there recruiting on Monday judge you like that, they're fools for missing such talent and drive."

Throughout that talk Shinsou loosens up slightly, but not much. He doesn't fully believe Izuku's words but he's begun eroding those high walls Shinsou built up. It's extremely difficult to get through such trauma after all. But they'll work on it. And in time hopefully Shinsou will rise up to his rightful place as one of the top heroes in terms of skill. Maybe not popularity... He _is _well suited to being an underground hero. Kinda like Izuku? Although Izuku only keeps half of his job underground and under wraps, that being the Headhunter part of it. Maybe he should discuss tactics on how to stay hidden and inconspicuous with Aizawa? If only for Shinsou's benefit rather than his own... He's pretty good at staying covered and out of sight, although maybe he's gotten rusty. It has been a while since he's gone out on a hunt...

He comes back to reality "Ah, sorry! I lost focus there for a second, haha," he scratches the back of his neck "You'll do great Shinsou, you're pure hero material!" he lifts his hand to his face, palm facing him, and clenches it into a fist "Try your best!"

And with that Shinsou walks off. And Izuku deflates as his exaggerated demeanour and overly enthusiastic manner of speech and gesture fades.

"Goddamn, Deku. You really pile it on don't you?"

"I have to Kacchan, I can't change my personality as a pro hero too much."

"How about being a snarky little bitch to villains then? Insult the shit out of them."

"E-Erm... S-Sure? I mean, that is the opposite of me..."

"Exactly my point Deku," he goes to put his arm over Izuku but realises he can't really act so friendly with his best friend while the latter is still in his hero garb and technically his teacher "Get changed we're hanging out before going home."

"O-Oh, okay!"

And so Izuku runs off to get changed out of his hero costume and into some casual clothes.

The two spent the rest of Friday and the weekend enjoying themselves and taking it easy. Bakugou was going to spend it doing his usual routine but Izuku made sure to disrupt it by frequently hanging out with him in. Bakugou should take it easy, he's near the top of the class for a reason.

However, Izuku was being a bit of a hypocrite with having Bakugou take it easy while he himself spent the next few days hunting villains as usual. But a series of thoughts plagued him the whole time he was patrolling, encountering and fighting these villains.

Was he going to invite some of the 1-A kids for internships? If he did who would he even take? Monoma and Shinsou seem like the obvious choices, what with the 'villainous' quirk and the similarity between Monoma's and Izuku's copying. But that would become less of an internship and more of a quirk training session... Ugh... It doesn't make sense to stop them from their internships for the sake of that, he'd have to catch them up at some other point.

But there's a more pressing issue... One I really should solve, one I should've solved long ago.

The Hero Killer... If I caught him back then he wouldn't have killed anyone... Damnit. This is my fault, I have to take responsibility... I know him better than anyone, I've analysed everything about him from the time he was a well-respected vigilante to the time he descended into villainy. Izuku knows his name, his past, his fighting style, his moves, his motive. The pattern between his attacks...

Izuku knows it, but he hasn't tried to intercept him. Thinking the other heroes ought to take him down. That the fact he failed that time was a sign not to try again... And it's cost people their lives. Good people.

That's it. I have to try.

He'll attack someone tomorrow. I'm certain. There'll be less heroes patrolling because some of them will be employed as guards for the sports festival. He'll attack during that time...

Hosu. He's only killed one hero from there. The pattern dictates two more killings before he moves on. Alleyways, far from the public eye.

Izuku began to chart the various potential spots where Stain may attack in a mental map of Hosu. He'd be prepared.

He will stop the man who at one time showed him that his course of using his terrible quirk for good was a just one.

He will defeat the vigilante turned villain.

Stain will be stopped.

* * *

**~~Sports Festival day 1: First-Year portion~~ **

The classes meet in their respective classrooms as normal, albeit dressed in their gym uniforms in preparation for the festival.

They're given the homeroom period to relax while the last few things are being set up at the stadium and the people get seated.

The classes' dedicated teachers give speeches, pep talks or otherwise. Whatever they wish really. Aizawa spends this time giving his own version of a pep talk.

"This is an important chance for you all. The U.A sports festival is the fast track to getting noticed and possibly getting hired as a sidekick or otherwise once you obtain your licenses. It only comes to you once a year for your three years here. That's only three chances in your lifetime. Make the most if it."

As he finishes his speech some students start to mutter among themselves like Mina, Kaminari and Kirishima. The more social ones.

Others take the time to breathe through their anxiety. Momo, Shinsou, Kouda. The insecure and/or shy.

And others are being nosy and asking Aizawa all sorts of questions. Much to the tired hero's annoyance. The sports festival is a rare chance for him to take a break, he can sleep on school grounds for the entirety of the school day then complete his work when the school day has finished ready for his late night patrols.

But someone had oh so wisely decided to have him as a co-commentator. Aizawa would not be forgetting this any time soon. Yamada will pay.

"Sir! Where is Iz- Valor?"

Of all the various questions being shouted at him that's the one Aizawa manages to hear, he'd been expecting it after all.

"Doing patrols, he's decided to take this chance away from U.A to, hopefully, make his debut."

'Although that's completely untrue, it's not a debut unless there's eyes on him and considering who he's hunting there won't be many of those.' the tired pro thinks to himself

"That reminds me," Aizawa continues, "Valor asked me to pass on some information. He won't be taking any internships, but he will be running extra intervention lessons and such. Shinsou, Monoma. You're on the roster for those, he's going to inform you when they'll be running so focus on the sports festival for now."

Ten minutes or so pass and the classes begin funnelling out of the school buildings to head toward the stadium.

Most of the students engage in some kind of communication along the way, whether it be texting people on cell phones or speaking with their classmates. Upon arriving the classes are announced one by one by the commentators.

Present Mic and Eraserhead, mostly Present Mic... Eraserhead isn't the shouting type so he doesn't even try keeping up with Mic's announcements.

"AND FROM THE HERO COURSE! CLASS 1-A!" a short pause as Mic turns towards Eraserhead (not that the hero can tell, wrapped up in bandages as he is. Practically mummified.) "THAT'S YOUR CLASS DOWN THERE ERASER? ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT THEM?"

"No," Aizawa says slowly and at a normal volume, a sharp contrast to the hyper and loud Present Mic "It's illogical to be worried. This is simply a test of their abilities, a reward for the hard-working ones. There is an extremely minute risk for a large reward. As such there's no reason to be worried for them."

"WHAT A CALM AND COLLECTED OUTLOOK! VERY BEFITTING."

Another class walks into the stadium grounds, surrounded by the thousands upon thousands of visitors. The stadium is full, as always on such occasions. All 100,000 seats. Even the first-year sports festival isn't something to sneeze at.

"ALSO FROM THE HERO COURSE! CLASS 1-B!"

And so the announcements went on, with Mic's thundering voice ringing out at near-deafening levels. There's a reason Aizawa wears earplugs in his company...

And once the announcements were over.

It was time for the speech.

Performed by the representative for the 1st years.

Bakugou Katsuki...

He walks up to the stage that Midnight is standing on, pushing through the sea of 1st years with hands in pockets.

And once he reaches the microphone. He doesn't even bother clearing his throat.

"I'm gonna win," he says, calm and collected "beat me if you can."

And saunters off stage as if nothing just happened. Like he hadn't just made every first-year his enemy.

But let's be honest here that was his goal.

He won't enjoy the festival unless everyone he goes against wants to rip out his guts and therefore do their best.

And Deku told them to enjoy the festival. So that's exactly what Katsuki is gonna do.

* * *

"THE FIRST MATCH OF THE SECOND ROUND! BOTH CONTESTANTS HAVE SHOWN DEDICATION AND SKILL IN USING THEIR QUIRKS" Mic begins.

"TODOROKI SHOUTO, SON OF ENDEAVOUR, " at this the split-haired teen physically winces "WHO CAN BRING THE FIRE AND THE ICE! AND...

SHINSOU HITOSHI, HE MIGHT BE PLAIN-LOOKING BUT DON'T LET YOUR GUARD DOWN. YOU MIGHT REGRET IT!"

again he pauses for a moment as he turns to the other commentator in the box

"THESE ARE BOTH YOUR STUDENTS AREN'T THEY ERASER? CARE TO GIVE US ANY INSIGHT?"

"As for quirks, their quirks are both powerful for different reasons. With his quirk and the advantage of surprise Shinsou can finish a fight before it starts, which is why this match-up is terrible for him. It'll be tough to surprise his classmate who knows exactly how his quirk works. As for Todoroki, he's a great fighter with or without a combat quirk. If it comes down to that there's no way for Shinsou to win."

"RIGHT, THAT MAKES SENSE. WELL, I'M ROOTING FOR BOTH SIDES! LET THE MATCH BEGIN!"

As so it begins.

Shinsou runs toward Todorki, in an irregular pattern. The biggest danger to Shinsou is being thrown out of bounds.

So he runs to get closer to the centre, closer to Todoroki.

Despite his abysmal chances of winning he's gonna try his best.

* * *

Izuku runs. Through alleys, roads and open space.

Dashing between people until eventually he gives up on his approach and takes to the roofs.

'Where could he be?'

A thrown knife cuts through stagnant alley air somewhere in Hosu.

_'Where is he?'_ Izuku frantically hops from building to building checking the alleys below.

Human flesh being torn asunder somewhere in Hosu.

**_'Where is he?'_** Izuku starts to breathe harder and quicker, slowly fading into a panic attack.

Slow, stalking steps of a predator resounding off alley walls somewhere in Hosu.

**_'Where is he?!'_ **

Somewhere in Hosu, a raised blade glints in the sunlight. Angled towards a 'fake' hero's heart.

**_'WHERE IS HE?!'_**

The sword comes down, keen and quick.

But it doesn't reach its destination as the wielder is blasted away from their prey.

"STAIN!" someone yells into the alleyway as the Hero Killer finds himself caught in the wind like a tumbleweed. Head over heels and unable to ground himself.

Once the strange winds stop he looks up from where he is on the ground to the culprit.

"I know you. You're that new hero, youngest hero ever. Taking that title directly from Hawks."

Izuku ignores him in favour of evaluating the situation. Narrow alley, enough space to move through without having to tuck in or anything but it's a really disadvantageous space for a fight... That is unless you know how to utilise walls to your advantage. And Izuku is one spry motherfucker.

It's just him, the injured hero and Stain.

Best course of action is to close the space...

Izuku begins to run forward until Stain starts throwing daggers at him.

He dodges some at first but when Stain speeds up his throwing Izuku just decides to ditch solid ground and start bouncing from wall to wall.

A move he may or may not have learnt from a really old-school hero who used to work at U.A.

Thanks to the speed he manages to land a solid hit on Stain's jaw dazing him a little, but Stain is dangerous for a reason. He lashes out with his blade despite being slightly stunned. Izuku responds by simply using his flexibility and fast reflexes to his advantage, dodging the blade easily.

The fight goes on for quite a while, a formula established. Dodges, attacks, blocks and counterattacks all performed in kind. Izuku throws in a quirk or two when he can but they're not particularly impactful even when they nick Stain.

Their fighting styles are oddly elegant with how practised they are... But they're also deathly similar.

Not only to each other though. And that observation catches Stain's veteran eye.

"Y'know, your moves are awfully familiar."

A sudden sinking feeling grips Izuku. As if he'd been thrust thousands of kilometres underwater, the pressure slowly reaching his breaking point. 'No. Nononononononono.'

"Reminds me of an old friend-" A sword swing, one that under normal circumstances Izuku wouldn't even have to consciously think of dodging, but now? He barely does so with 100% of his focus "-of mine."

"Tell me, you wouldn't happen to be the Headhunter under that mask, would you?"

Izuku freezes, just for a split second. But that's enough to give Stain the opening he needs. He's skilled and experienced, more so than Izuku... And that's terrifying, Izuku has been fighting daily for [X] years now. How long would Stain have needed to train and hone his instincts to be that decisive; that quick; that deadly.

Stain, now with a manic ear-to-ear smile that looks so, so wrong leans down to look Izuku right in the eyes under his visor. "I can't believe it, I couldn't believe it back then either. How short he was, how scrawny he seemed... 'He must be young, That Headhunter.' I thought." He licks Izuku's blood off his blade "But it goes deeper. You, the vigilante who leaves people quirkless ended up teaching at U.A after passing the licensing exam with flying colors." He gives Izuku, who is now paralyzed on the ground, a knowing look 'He's connected it... He knows what my quirk really is... Or at least he's starting to realize.' "They said you had an Adaptation quirk, that it changed what it is depending on the situation... But it's more sinister than that, isn't it?" Izuku gulps once and then again, trying desperately to breathe but he can't, he just can't. This is it, even if they both make it out of here with their lives Izuku is ruined... He gets outted as the Headhunter... It isn't fair... He's only ever wanted to be a hero, but then his quirk reared it's ugly head. He only ever wanted to help people, but all he's done is make his family and friends worried. Kacchan will be angry... I can't imagine what his reaction would be to me landing in Tartarus... "You steal quirks. Those people you attack during your patrols as a vigilante you put to use when you don your hero mask." The shadows on Stain's face make his features invisible, only his white eyes remain. Piercing into Izuku "God must be smiling down on me tonight. Not only do I get to kill a fake hero, I also get to kill the worst scum of all. And once I'm done here." his glare becomes more intense "When I finally keel over at the hands of All Might, after my job is done... **I'll visit you in your personal corner of hell.**"

Stain lowers his blade, aimed directly at Izuku's heart.

{Danger Imminent.

Forcefield: 1 cm, elastic, 60% power.

Activate}

Izuku's pupils dilate. His eyes, now glowing red slightly, glaze over. If you looked closely, you'd see shapes inside of them. Something almost like gears and cogs... Moving seamlessly, like a well-oiled clockwork.

A green barrier appears, just above Izuku's rising and falling chest. Roughly 10 centimeters from where his heart is beating against his ribcage, not that he knows that. The barrier is different than from when he uses it consciously though... It's much more precise. It's exactly enough to stop the sword's tip but not any larger. And it has give... He wasn't aware he could make it elastic in nature...

{Imminent danger halted.

Recommended course of action: Running away. Leaving the other victim as a distraction.}

_'No. That's not an option. Even if it wasn't Iida's brother here.'_

{Chances of success in current situation: Low, approximately 10%.}

_'What about if im not paralysed?'_

{Chances dramatically increase, to approximately 50%}

_'A coin toss? That sounds like my kind of gamble...'_

"[AMPLIFY]!" Izuku screams, loud enough to further the stunned look on the Hero Killer's face as his sure prey fights back.

Healing energy courses through Izuku's body, fending the paralysis off. Until, a half second later just as the Hero Killer is rearing back for another swipe, he regains control of his legs and arms. His extremities still feel numb, but he'll have to deal without being able to feel his toes or fingers.

The swipe comes down right where Izuku's neck was just a few seconds ago. But he's gone, jumping off an elastic barrier he created using it as a trampoline.

"How? You should've been paralysed for at least a few minutes even if you're blood type O!" The Hero Killer shouts.

"Unless I happen to have a regeneration quirk." Izuku smiles smugly behind his visor "It was a long shot but it worked out all right for ending the paralysis."

"So you really do steal quirks?" A different voice says, Ingenium.

"Yup. Sorry, Senpai. Someone like me becoming a hero is unheard of."

_'What are the chances I can win while making sure Ingenium is safe?'_ Izuku wonders

{Low, roughly 12% rather than the originally predicted 50%}

_'And if I get him out of here first?'_

{50%}

_'Case closed.'_

"[Amplify]." He whispers to satisfy the activation condition.

[Rush], [Bolt] and [Amplify]. All working in tandem.

He appears next to Ingenium in the blink of an eye, green lightning arcing off his already emerald costume contrasting with his unexplainably red clockwork eyes.

"I'm not the hero you wanted, but I sure as hell am all you've got." Izuku says to Iida's beloved brother. Scanning over him quickly.

{Spinal cord injuries.

Paralysis detected below waist.

Damage report: Non-fatal but permanent

Chances of recovery: Extremely low, estimated at 3%}

A sense of dread befalls Izuku. He was too late. His response to Ingenium's call for help over the hero network wasn't enough. It wasn't quick enough. He failed.

The Turbo Hero: Ingenium who prided himself on his quick response and running speed which allowed him to reach people in need fast enough to be of help would never walk again because when he needed help no one was fast enough.

The irony is cruel...

He'd have to make the hero killer pay, stop him from hurting anyone else. That's what Ingenium wants, that's what Izuku wants.

He picks Ingenium up into a bridal style carry, which he analysed to be the safest for his situation, and starts to crouch slightly ready to book it.

_'Safest place for Ingenium, what is it?'_

{Roof. Chances of Stain being able to get there are low, below 17%}

_'The roof it is then.'_

He charges his quirks up to the required percentage, takes a second to breathe in deeply.

And whispers to Ingenium "I'm sorry that of all people you're stuck with someone like me."

And he runs right up the wall, zero issues. Keeping Ingenium as steady as possible using his precise calculations. He sets him down on the roof, three stories from the ground and tells him to call an ambulance and police.

Then he runs back down to finish what he started.

"Saving Ingenium first, oddly heroic of you. Monster."

"Hey, if anyone's a monster here it's you buddy." Izuku readies himself in a simple side-on stance. Fists up and ready to defend or attack, knees slightly bent, legs shoulder-width apart as he starts bouncing up and down a little "And I'm taking you down, I know my limits. No way was I gonna win while covering both myself and Ingenium. But one-on-one? I reckon it's a coin toss whether I win or not."

"50%? You're taking that kind of chance?"

"I've been known to be a little insane, I've blown myself up a few times making some of gadgets and costumes y'know."

They both keep intent eyes trained on each other, neither looking anywhere but at their enemy. Nothing else exists for them right now. It's a life or death fight between two enemies, the world bleeds into the background. As Stain makes the first move, throwing a few daggers at Izuku and dashing towards him right after doing so.

Izuku dodges under the first, catches one and decides to take the other one instead of using any of his quirks to block it. Not worth the physical burden. It was flying at his shoulder anyway, completely non-lethal.

* * *

Shinsou dodges a jab thrown at him by Todoroki, it's mostly beginner's luck let's be honest here. Shinsou isn't a seasoned fighter. But what little training he has undertook seems to be pulling it's weight as he grabs todoroki's arm and flips him over his shoulder and into the concrete arena below.

The only hit he's gotten on Todoroki.

And I only got it because he's pulling his punches. Going easy on me cause I'm practically quirkless as long as he doesn't respond.

Shinsou's blood begins to boil as the crowd around him gasps at the change of events

* * *

He's ready for Stain's swipe before the Hero Killer even knows he's going to perform one, he's halfway to blocking the threatened area by the time Stain begins his attack. Despite the lack of tells Stain has. Izuku can't help but smirk smugly as he manages to predict Stain's moves each and every time.

{Left Shoulder}, dodged.

{Liver}, blocked.

{Wide swipe, upper torso}, ducked under it.

This pattern continues on for god knows how long, Izuku is heavily on the defensive. Stain knows his only chance is defeating Izuku before he can use any of his arsenal. Little does the Hero Killer know that Izuku can fight perfectly quirkless.

That's what happens when you spend most of your wishing you were quirkless. Listening to people calling you powerless wishing that was the truth. You learn how to fight as if you were.

This doesn't faze Izuku, if this is how the fight goes the authorities will get here before Izuku even has to worry about which quirks he'll be using.

* * *

Shinsou, now immobilised by the frost gripping his legs, is truly furious.

His classmate is royally pissing him off.

Okay, taking it easy with such a powerful quirk on someone fairly defenseless is noble and all. But not in a fight. Shinsou went onto the arena fully expecting frostbite and burns.

Hell, he'd even resigned himself to potential permanent damage. He knows how crazy U.A can get.

But Todoroki isn't using his ice to it's full capacity.

I mean, he created a massive fucking glacier to take out Sero in less than a second. But what does Shinsou get? A drawn-out fight with him grasping at straws, firing insults, compliments, jokes and anything else he can at Todoroki just hoping to get any reaction that would give him the chance of brainwashing him.

"You know, you really piss me off." He says to Todoroki, a snarl on his face "Are you full of yourself? Is that the case? Why the fuck aren't you fighting me properly? You wouldn't go into close quarters willingly with anyone else, so why me?"

Silence. As expected, even if Shinsou wasn't planning on brainwashing Todoroki with those words (he wasn't consciously aiming for that, he was just too pissed off to keep his questions to himself) he wouldn't risk speaking to him.

"What about your fire? I've only ever seen you use it once. What's up with that? You think you can become number one with just half of your power? What happens when you find someone freezing in the mountains, huh? You just gonna let them die because you don't want to use your fire? What happens when a villain with control over ice comes about? What then?" the purple-haired boy's scowl deepens.

Silence.

I've had enough...

"YOU CAN'T KEEP GOING AT 50% YOU IDIOT! EVERYONE AROUND YOU IS GIVING THEIR ALL AND ALL YOU EVER DO IS GIVE HALF EFFORT. IT. PISSES. ME. OFF. IT TOOK ME ALL I HAD TO EVEN GET INTO THE HEROICS COURSE DAMNIT, WHERE DO YOU GET OFF PUTTING SO LITTLE EFFORT INTO IT?" the ghoul of an idea apprates in Shinsou's mind, a comparison he doesn't believe in whatsoever (he's seen the type of man Endeavour is, the type of hero he is) but one he voices anyway "LOOKS LIKE THE APPLE DOESN'T FALL FAR FROM THE TREE!" Shinsou screams, his head hung low in imminent shame "WHEN WILL THE TWO OF YOU GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSES? WHEN DOES ENDEAVOUR LOOK PAST HIS PRIDE AND BECOME A GOOD HERO? WHEN DOES SHOUTO START LOOKING PAST HIS BULLSHIT GRUDGE AND REALISE HE'S NOT HIS SHITTY FATHER?!"

At that.

Shouto bursts into flames.

And the fire kindles his determination to give it his all.

* * *

Like hell I can do that!

What kind of hero would I be if I didn't give it my all?

What kind of U.A teacher would I be if I didn't go plus ultra once in a while?

He dodges Stain's swipe by jumping backwards, his feet land flat on the alley wall behind him.

_'In this instant.'_ Izuku thinks _'I'm ending it.'_

He bursts into flames.

_'[Blaze]'_

The bottom half of his costume is shredded as his legs get bigger and bigger.

_'[Size Manipulation]'_

His body begins to thrum with power.

_'[Strength Enhancement] x2'_

And he launches himself off the wall at speeds akin to Gran Torino's [Jet] through the use of his quirks.

A human torpedo rockets toward Stain.

Who has his sword in front of him in a basic defensive stance.

{Danger.}

Izuku ignores the droning of his mind and simply delivers his strike, one simple but devastating punch.

Knocking Stain right out, just like that.

The Hero Killer crumples to the ground in a mess of limbs.

And Izuku feels a warm sensation around his torso

That's not the fire.

It's something different...

He looks down, dropping [Blaze] as he does so.

And he's met with Stain's blade. Inside his torso. Piercing right through him.

Oh? So that's where it went?

He stumbles slightly backward but catches himself before he falls.

This is bad... I can't get Ingenium to the hospital like this.

He looks down at the PDA built into his costume and starts tapping through to find the Hero Network app.

"If he. gets immediate care... he might... re..."

Izuku falls to the ground, crumpled side by side with the hero killer's unconscious form.

"...cover..."

His eyes flutter shut.

And the unknown rears its head.

{Emergency procedure. Activate [Regeneration] at full capacity.}

* * *

No one's really asking what the weird voice that Izuku keeps mistaking for his own thoughts is. Want to or not you're gonna find out sooner rather than later :3

Thank you for reading :3


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